Department for Transport

Crossrail Line: Railway Stations

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding his Department allocated in Control Period 5 to the Crossrail station upgrade works at (a) West Ealing, (b) Ealing Broadway and (c) Acton Main Line.

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the funding allocated in Control Period 5 to the Crossrail upgrade works at (a) West Ealing, (b) Ealing Broadway and (c) Acton Main Line stations has been spent.

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding has been allocated in Control Period 6 to the Crossrail station upgrade works at (a) West Ealing, (b) Ealing Broadway and (c) Acton Main Line.

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with (a) Network Rail and (b) Crossrail Ltd on the transfer of funding from Control Period 5 to Control Period 6 for station upgrades at (i) West Ealing, (ii) Ealing Broadway and (iii) Acton Main Line.

Andrew Jones: All of the funding required is in place for the remaining work at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line. The Department for Transport has regular discussions with Network Rail and Crossrail Limited regarding the Network Rail works. Network Rail closely monitors its finances through monthly reporting to Crossrail Limited. In Control Period 5, £16.6m of funding was allocated to the build elements of the Crossrail station upgrade works at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line. Of this funding £16.6m has been spent. In Control Period 6, £64.4m of funding has been allocated to the Crossrail station upgrade works at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line.

Crossrail Line: Railway Stations

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what work is being done by Network Rail to value engineer the scope of station designs at the upgraded Crossrail stations at (a) West Ealing, (b) Ealing Broadway and (c) Acton Main Line.

Andrew Jones: There are no plans to de-scope any of the station designs at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line. Network Rail is committed to delivering cost efficiencies wherever possible through optimising delivery. A small change has been made to the design of the canopies at Ealing Broadway to optimise value for money.

Crossrail Line: Railway Stations

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate has been made of the costs of the station upgrades as part of the Crossrail programme for (a) West Ealing, (b) Ealing Broadway and (c) Acton Main Line.

Andrew Jones: On 7 May 2019 Network Rail awarded the contract to Graham for construction of the new or enhanced ticket halls at West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line. The contract award was for £46.6m.

Railways: Electrification

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect on the level of greenhouse gas emissions of the Government's decision of June 2017 to cancel the planned electrification of railway lines between (a) Cardiff and Swansea, (b) Kettering and Sheffield and (c) Windermere and Oxenholme.

Andrew Jones: We are committed to a greener, cleaner transport system. That’s why we are modernising the UK rail fleet to introduce more electric, bi-mode (electric and diesel hybrid) and alternative-fuel trains to the network. Better trains and upgraded infrastructure will take polluting cars and lorries off our roads – reducing the overall carbon footprint of UK transport – making our air cleaner.. On the Midland Main Line, brand new intercity trains will be introduced, which will have less environmental impact than the current trains, some of which are over 30 years old. They will be bi-mode, which means they can also take advantage of the electrified parts of the line. Our ambition is that these will be the cleanest ever bi-mode trains. Abellio, who have recently been awarded the new East Midlands Railway franchise, are seeking innovative ways to keep emissions to a minimum when running under diesel power. It is not possible to accurately calculate the environmental impact of new bi-mode trains until the design and development of the new trains is complete. This new franchise will be at the forefront of delivering a cleaner, greener rail network. Abellio will trial hydrogen fuel cell trains on the Midland Main Line and will run zero-carbon pilots at six stations along the route. Once the transformation of the Great Western is complete the new Intercity Express trains will spend most of the journey between London and Swansea in electric mode. In diesel mode the new trains meet the highest rolling stock emissions standards. On Windermere to Oxenholme, there are proposals for alternative fuel trials involving battery technology by Northern on the Lakes Line.

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his timescale is for announcing the next stage of the process for selecting a preferred developer for a southern rail link to Heathrow Airport.

Andrew Jones: The Department has not undertaken a procurement process to select a preferred developer for a Southern Rail Link to Heathrow. Following the publication of the Market Sounding Report which showed that none of the schemes put forward were able to advance without Government support, and in line with the Report recommendations, the Department has been working to further develop and clarify the outcomes we want to be delivered from this project and consider appropriate commercial and procurement models. This work will be made available to the market by the summer along with further engagement opportunities.

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport,  what consultation his department has undertaken with (a) local authorities, (b) Local Enterprise Partnerships and business organisations, (c) trades unions and (d) voluntary sector bodies in the south of England on the potential benefits of a southern rail link to London Heathrow Airport.

Andrew Jones: The Department has been actively engaging with many interested parties to better understand their views on this scheme. This is being done as part of the work to clarify Government’s objectives for the scheme which was a recommendation of the Market Sounding Findings Report, published in December 2018.

Aircraft: Safety

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport,  whether he plans to ask the Civil Aviation Authority to review the safety of the Sukhoi Superjet 100.

Jesse Norman: The recent accident at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport involving an Aeroflot Sukhoi Superjet will be investigated by the Interstate Aviation Committee in Russia, while the responsible authority for certification of the aircraft design in the European Union is the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). No UK airlines currently operate this aircraft type, nor are there currently any routine operations of the type into the UK.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of instructing UK airlines to adopt turbulence-dodging technology to reduce emissions.

Jesse Norman: The Department has not made an assessment of the merits of instructing UK airlines to adopt turbulence-dodging technology to reduce emissions. As part of the development of the Aviation 2050 green paper, the Department commissioned research to understand what technological and operational measures could be available to reduce emissions from aviation by 2050. Both the green paper and an accompanying paper on reducing aviation emissions were published on 17 December 2018 and may be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/aviation-2050-the-future-of-uk-aviation The Government is committed to tackling aviation emissions. Our final Aviation 2050 strategy, which will be published later this year, will set out a clear approach to ensure that the sector plays its part in taking action against climate change.

South Eastern Rail Franchise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the value for money of the South Eastern rail franchise.

Andrew Jones: The South Eastern Franchise Competition is currently ongoing. As part of the Department’s usual process, prior to contract award, a full assessment of the value for money of the winning bidder’s proposition is undertaken.

Department for Transport: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport uses the Civil Service HR Casework service. Using this system it is not possible to confirm whether, in grievance cases raised by staff in the Department for Transport where employees have stated that either ‘Bullying’, ‘Harassment’ or both is the reason (or part of the reason) for raising the grievance, the cases were raised against a manager or another colleague. Therefore, the information is not held in the format requested.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to extend the system of financial support for the installation of electric car charging points to people living in flats and apartments.

Jesse Norman: We are supporting the development of residential chargrepoint infrastructure through the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS) (£500 off cost of installation); and we plan to consult as soon as possible on changes to building regulations to ensure every new home in England has a chargepoint where appropriate. The EVHS grant is designed to help private plug-in vehicle owners offset some of the upfront cost of the purchase and installation of a dedicated domestic recharging unit. It is available for people living in flats, as long as they meet all of the eligibility criteria of the scheme, which can be found in the EVHS guidance for customers online. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Governments have launched a consultation to review the provision of chargepoint infrastructure as part of the Law Commission’s work to review and reinvigorate the commonhold tenure in England and Wales.

Speed Limits

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has plans to limit vehicle speed to 20 miles per hour in residential areas.

Jesse Norman: The Department believes that local highway authorities are best placed to set local speed limits based on the circumstances of the area and the views of local people. The Government has no plans to consider making 20mph limits the default speed limit in residential areas.

M20

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether all lanes closed as part of Operation Brock on the M20 are now open.

Jesse Norman: The coast-bound carriageway between junctions 8 and 9 of the M20 is currently operating as a three-lane motorway while the Operation Brock contraflow system is not active on this part of the motorway. The London-bound carriageway has two running lanes, operating with a 50mph speed limit. The metal barrier that is currently in place on the London-bound carriageway between junctions 8 and 9 of the M20 will remain under regular review over the coming months but is unlikely to be removed before the end of October. This is to allow for the option of deploying the contraflow at short notice during times of cross-Channel disruption, caused by bad weather or industrial action, for example. Highways England are responsible for operational decisions regarding the strategic road network in England, which includes the M20 in Kent. Decisions regarding significant changes to this road network – such as the removal of the barrier or the use of lanes on the M20 carriageways – are made on their advice and by taking into consideration the safety and convenience of all road users.

Roads: Capital Investment

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding available for Road Investment strategy 2 is (a) already committed to schemes and (b) not committed to schemes.

Jesse Norman: The Government expects to make £25.3 billion available to Highways England during the second Road Period (2020-2025). Of that, about 40% will fund the completion of projects included in the first Road Investment Strategy. The remainder will fund operations, maintenance and renewals on the strategic road network plus new enhancement schemes. The Government intends to announce its decisions on the distribution of this funding later this year.

Taxis: Licensing

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2019 to Written Question 232503, what the timeframe is for the Government to bring forward primary legislation to reform taxi and private hire licensing laws.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Government will bring forward legislation in respect of the commitments made in the response to the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing when time allows.

Shipping

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what (a) targets, (b) timescale and (c) funding is in place to deliver the objectives of the (i) Port Connectivity Study and (ii) Maritime 2050 strategy.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: In a little over a year the department has published both the Port Connectivity Study (PCS) and Maritime 2050. The PCS focused upon ways to better connect ports in England to the wider transport network, outlining clear recommendations. Departmental resources have been dedicated to achieving these aims and recommendations set out in the PCS. For example, the department has established a Virtual Freight Team, bringing together expertise in road, rail, aviation, and maritime to ensure consistent cross-modal communication and understanding on freight matters. Other initiatives are also underway, such as the £10 million funding from the department for a new access road at Newhaven Port. This work, as well as other ongoing work on port connectivity with industry, will continue as we seek to maximise the value of ports to the UK economy. Maritime 2050 sets out a long-term vision for the UK maritime sector. 184 recommendations are made in the strategy, with each identified as either short term (1- 5 years), medium term (5-15 years), or long term (more than 15 years). These recommendations are for both Government and industry to deliver together. The Government has already begun acting on these recommendations, for example in announcing £100,000 worth of funding for careers roadshows for girls, to be delivered by the 1851 trust. More funding announcements are to be made over the coming months. Close engagement with industry will be maintained as further Maritime 2050 routemaps are published in the coming year, giving greater detail to the plans and resources for Government and industry action.

Electric Vehicles: Bicycles

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of amending the cycle to work scheme guidance to support a greater uptake of electric bikes.

Jesse Norman: Electric bikes may already be purchased through the Cycle to Work Scheme.Officials from the Department for Transport, Her Majesty’s Treasury and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs are currently finalising a review of the current guidance on the Cycle to Work scheme in order to provide greater clarity and flexibility for employers on how the scheme works, and to support greater uptake of electric bikes. The Department is planning to publish the revised guidance shortly.

Cycling

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to increase use of the cycle to work scheme by (a) employers and (b) employees.

Jesse Norman: Officials from the Department for Transport, Her Majesty’s Treasury and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs are currently finalising a review of the current guidance on the Cycle to Work scheme to provide greater clarity and flexibility for employers on how the scheme works. The Department is planning to publish the revised guidance shortly.

Department for Transport: Staff

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish the performance markings for (a) equality groups and (b)  grades in his Department for each quarter of the last financial year.

Jesse Norman: This data is not currently available. The Department will conduct a formal review of the implementation of the new performance management policy in the autumn. As part of this review analysis of performance descriptors awarded will be completed. At this point we do not expect formal publication of this data, but they will be available in Departmental discussions with unions.

Department for Transport: Staff

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the distribution of Local Recognition Awards for each equality group in his Department was in the last financial year.

Jesse Norman: The information requested is not held centrally.

Department for Transport: Staff

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the distribution of performance markings were by each (a) equality group and (b) grades in his central department in each quarter of the last financial year.

Jesse Norman: The information requested is currently not held centrally.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Boilers: Natural Gas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2019 to Question 245593 on Boilers: Natural Gas; what the evidence base is for the statement that in April 2018 the majority of boilers on the market met or exceeded the minimum efficiency requirement of 92 per cent.

Andrew Stephenson: In 2017, BEIS undertook an internal assessment of the Products Characteristic Database, the database containing product performance data used in the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP). This assessment found that 65 per cent of the 492 boilers added to the database between 2014 and August 2016 met or exceeded the minimum efficiency requirement of 92 per cent according to the Energy-related Product (ErP) standard.

Boilers: Natural Gas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May to Question 245593 on Boilers: Natural Gas, what assessment his Department has made of the operational efficiency of domestic boilers once installed between 2005 and 2019.

Andrew Stephenson: Current standards require all new gas boilers installed in English homes to be A rated. Research on real-world boiler performance has been carried out to inform the representation of gas boilers in the government’s Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP). Further information can be found on the Building Research Establishment (BRE) website. BRE deliver the SAP contract on behalf of the government.

Space Technology: Investment

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to encourage investment in the space industry in (a) the UK and (b) rural areas.

Chris Skidmore: Britain has a vibrant commercial space sector and plays a leading role in international space science. Scotland has end-to-end capabilities from Satellite design and manufacture to the use of space data and services in day-to-day applications. Indeed:In 2015 & 16, more satellites were manufactured in Glasgow than any other European city,The number of space organisations in Scotland grew by 26% between 2014/15 & 2016/17,Scottish space organisations employ almost 1 in 5 of the UK space workforce. We want to ensure that our space industry, one of the fastest-growing industries in the UK economy, covers the whole of the UK. In July 2018, we announced £31.5 million in grant funding to support development of a new vertical spaceport in Sutherland, providing a much-needed boost to rural Scotland.We are equipping the UK with the Space facilities we will need in the future. The National Satellite Test Facility now being built in Harwell with £99m of investment from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund will provide crucial new test facilities for an expanding space manufacturing sector.The UK Space Agency also co-invests with the Satellite Applications Catapult in a network of five regional Centres of Excellence in Satellite Applications across the UK, including the Scottish Centre of Excellence hosted by the University of Strathclyde. The Centres raise awareness of opportunities in the space sector, publicise funding calls and broker collaborative partnership, including with local universities.

Electrical Engineering: Research

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much funding has been allocated to research and development in the field of power electronics throughout the UK in the latest period for which figures are available.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much funding has been allocated to power electronics research and development at establishments in (a) Scotland, (b) England, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland.

Chris Skidmore: Our ambition is to raise total R&D investment to 2.4% of GDP by 2027, the biggest ever increase, and 3% in the longer-term.   Research and development into power electronics is funded by UK Research and Innovation primarily through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Innovate UK. These councils have currently allocated £36.1m to active grants in power electronics. Of this, £35.2m is allocated to establishments in England; £0.6m in Scotland and; £0.3m in Wales. This includes grant funding to individual projects, a recently funded future electrical machines manufacturing hub at the University of Sheffield and a Centre for Doctoral Training in power electronics for sustainable propulsion at Newcastle University. The Centre will support the best and brightest PhD students from across the UK.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Andrew Stephenson: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy was created in July 2016. Bullying or harassment is not tolerated at BEIS. BEIS is taking active steps where needed to address any issues, and is one of the best performing departments in government with regards to creating an inclusive culture, as highlighted by the cross-civil service people survey results.Below are the figures for the number of bullying and/or harassment cases recorded against members of BEIS staff where advice and guidance was sought from our HR Casework Services team. We do not hold information centrally on whether the staff against whom the allegations were made were managers at the time of the case being raised.YearCasesJuly 2016 – December 20161 (0.03% of BEIS)January 2017 – December 20175 (0.13% of BEIS)January 2018 – December 201811 (0.28% of BEIS)January 2019 – end April 20194 (0.10% of BEIS)

Fracking: Water

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of effect of hydraulic fracturing operations on the economy.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK has potentially significant shale gas reserves, but exploration is necessary to understand whether it will be possible to technically and commercially extract these reserves. The Government is supportive of shale gas exploration to understand the size of the UK opportunity.

Whirlpool Corporation: Tumble Dryers

Ian Blackford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of whether Whirlpool has (a) implemented adequate product safety checks and (b) carried out satisfactory repairs on models of tumble dryer that had been found faulty.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Office for Product Safety and Standards has conducted a full review into Whirlpool’s modification programme for tumble dryers. This review concluded that the risk to modified tumble dryers was low. A decision letter was sent to Whirlpool, placing a number of requirements on the company. The Chief Executive of the Office for Product Safety and Standards met senior Whirlpool officials 2nd May to advise them of concerns regarding the adequacy of their response to the requirements placed upon them and advised them on steps necessary to fulfil their obligations. OPSS is closely monitoring the response of Whirlpool and further steps will be taken if the response is not satisfactory. Consumer safety is a key priority and the Government will hold the company to account.

Minimum Wage

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps his Department has taken to ensure that the national minimum wage is enforced.

Kelly Tolhurst: Enforcement of the National Minimum and National Living Wage (NMW) is a priority for the Government. Since 2015 we have doubled the budget to enforce the NMW and we are taking tough action against the minority of employers who underpay. In 2018/19 HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) identified a record £24.4 million in arrears for over 220,000 workers and issued over £17 million in penalties to non-compliant employers. HMRC proactively investigates employers where they identify a risk of non-compliance; this work accounts for around half of all investigations undertaken. In addition, HMRC responds to every worker complaint regarding NMW payment including those made anonymously. Government is committed to helping employers comply with NMW rules first time; in April we launched a £1 million communications campaign to raise awareness and understanding of NMW rules among both workers and employers.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Colombia: Human Rights

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Colombia on the UN Human Rights Council report on human rights defenders in that country, and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: I spoke to Carlos Holmes Trujillo, the Colombian Foreign Minister, on 26 January at the UN in New York; and on 4 February at a Lima Group meeting in Ottawa. On 9 May the Minister of State for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, met with Colombian High Counsellor for Stabilisation, Emilio Archila, and directly raised the issue of human rights defenders. We regularly express our concern to the Colombian Government over the fate of human rights defenders, and work closely with civil society groups to bring individual cases to the government's attention.

Colombia: Politics and Government

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the refusal of the Colombian President Ivan Duque to sign the Statutory Law on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace on the political situation in that country; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Colombian people elected President Duque in 2018 with a mandate to implement the 2016 peace agreement and make certain changes to it. President Duque's recent objections to six articles of the law governing the Special Jurisdiction for Peace are consistent with his election campaign and with the powers of the presidency. However, the UK believes that the delay risks undermining the system's authority and reducing cooperation with the the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia . We believe that the Transitional justice law must be approved swiftly to ensure continued confidence in the peace process. On 11 March, our Ambassador for Colombia informed President Duque of the UK position. On 9 May, the Minister for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon reiterated this point when he met with Colombian High Counsellor for Stabilisation, Emilio Archila.

Abdullah Öcalan

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the Turkish Government on the (a) Kurds, (b) UK citizens and (c) members of the Turkish Parliament on hunger strike to protest the isolation of Abdullah Ocalan.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Government most recently raised the issue of the ongoing hunger strikes protesting the conditions of Abdullah Ocalan's imprisonment with Turkish authorities on 13 May. While robustly condemning the ongoing violence perpetrated by the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party), we encourage Turkey to implement the recommendations of the report on Mr Ocalan's imprisonment produced by the Council of Europe Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. In this regard we welcome the fact that Mr Ocalan was granted access to two lawyers on 2 May.We also note the comments made by those lawyers in a subsequent press conference, that Mr Ocalan advised against his supporters continuing these hunger strikers to the point that it threatens their health . We continue to urge Turkey to uphold the human rights of detainees, including access to medical treatment where necessary.

Afghanistan: Religious Freedom

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the level of threat to the (a) Hindu and (b) Christian communities in Afghanistan.

Mark Field: Security Forces are committed to tackling this threat. As part of NATO's Resolute Support Mission, the UK supports the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces in its efforts to improve security for all communities.Ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan, such as the Christian, Sikh and Hindu communities, continue to face challenges. We regularly raise human rights issues with the Government of Afghanistan, including the need to protect the rights of all ethnic and religious groups in line with the constitution. The UK condemns in the strongest possible terms the targeting of innocent people based on their beliefs. Last year, I publicly condemned the 1 July attack on a group of Sikhs and Hindus in Jalalabad as "a despicable attack on Afghanistan's historic Sikh and Hindu community".

North Macedonia: NATO

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to lay before Parliament the Accession Protocol relating to Northern Macedonia's membership of NATO; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: We look forward to welcoming North Macedonia as the 30th member of NATO. My Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament on 26 February outlined the process of the entering into force of the Prespa Agreement and North Macedonia's NATO Accession. In line with that, UK ratification for North Macedonia's accession to NATO is progressing and we plan to lay the Accession Protocol before Parliament in the coming weeks.

Sudan: Human Rights

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in the international community on helping to ensure human rights protections for civilians in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: Human rights remain a priority for our engagement on Sudan. Since the removal of President Bashir, and the establishment of a Transitional Military Council, the UK has ensured that the situation in Sudan has been discussed at the highest levels, including at the UN Security Council and EU. We continue to engage with international counterparts across our diplomatic network to coordinate an international response that supports the people of Sudan. The Foreign Secretary spoke with Kenyan Cabinet secretary for Foreign Affairs on 3 May and Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs on 25 April on the importance of international partners’ engagement to support a swift transition to civilian rule. In addition, we have ongoing discussions with our Troika partners (US and Norway), collectively calling for a transition that is inclusive and respectful of human rights and the rule of law. We also continue to maintain pressure on the Sudanese authorities to respect the Sudanese people’s right to assembly and to avoid the use of violence.​

Poland: Ethnic Cleansing

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 29 April 2019 to Question 246491, whether he has raised the comments of Senator Grzegorz Bierecki with his Polish counterpart.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign Secretary has not raised the comments of Senator Grzegorz Bierecki with his Polish counterpart.

Christianity: Oppression

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to help extend protections for Christians from persecution internationally.

Mark Field: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is committed to using our influence to defend Freedom of Religion or Belief as a universal human right which should be enjoyed by everyone. That is why the Prime Minister appointed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon as her Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief. Lord Ahmad regularly raises this topic with his international counterparts and through the Human Rights Council. In recent years we have seen reports of a particular rise in the persecution of Christians. The Foreign Secretary launched the independent review of FCO support for persecuted Christians on 30 January. The Review is led by the Bishop of Truro. It will map levels of persecution and discrimination against Christians around the world, and provide robust recommendations on how the FCO can respond. The Bishop has now submitted his interim report and will submit his final report in Summer. ​

Egypt: Chrisitanity

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the extent of the (a) destruction and (b) closure of places of religious worship for Coptic Christians in Egypt (i) Manshiyet Zafarana and (ii) other towns and villages.

Dr Andrew Murrison: ​We are concerned about reports of the destruction or closure of Coptic places of worship in Egypt at a local level. We condemn all discrimination against religious minorities and constraints on their freedom to practise their faith. Positive steps forward on this agenda are to be welcomed, including President Sisi's calls for peaceful coexistence and the Government of Egypt's expression of support for the rights of Christians and for religious tolerance.The 2016 Church Building Law represents another step forward in this area, increasing the number of registered churches in Egypt.

India: Christianity

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the safety of Christians in India during the current elections from reported actions by (a) Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and (b) other Hindu nationalist groups.

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to reports by Open Doors UK, what representations he has made to his Indian counterpart on anti-conversion laws in eight Indian states.

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Indian counterpart on laws and legislation to close (a) foreign institutions and (b) Christian-led schools.

Mark Field: India has a strong democratic framework and constitutionally enshrined protections for freedom of religious belief. However it faces numerous challenges enforcing these, including for some Christians and other religious minorities, due to its size and social and economic development. We maintain a continuous assessment of the human rights situation across India. The situation for Christians is varied depending on location, socio-economic background, and the proportion of religious minorities.We engage with India on the full range of human rights matters, both bilaterally and through the EU. We work with Union and State Governments, and with non-governmental organisations, to build capacity and share expertise to promote human rights for all. We have raised Christian persecution with the Indian Government. Most recently, on 25 March 2019, the British High Commission highlighted the importance of tackling Christian persecution with India’s Ministry of External Affairs.The British High Commission in New Delhi, and our Deputy High Commissions across India, also run projects promoting minority rights and regularly meet with religious representatives. Most recently, the High Commissioner met senior Christian leaders on 2 and 17 April, and the Chair of the National Human Rights Commission on 25 April, to discuss the situation for Christians across India​

Ukraine: Churches

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the extent of destruction of churches in Russian-occupied Eastern Ukraine.

Sir Alan Duncan: We are extremely concerned by reports from Eastern Ukraine of the seizing and sealing of churches and other places of worship, forced cancellation of services and arrests and harassment of clergy. This is part of a wider pattern of human rights violations and abuses perpetrated by Russian-backed separatists in the non-government controlled areas of eastern Ukraine.We continue to call on Russia to use its considerable influence over the separatists to ensure respect for all human rights, and on all sides to implement recommendations contained in the reports of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

China: Christianity

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of reports of the (a) repression of Christians (b) arrest of Pastor Wang Yi, (c) installation of surveillance equipment in churches, (d) destruction of churches, (e) eviction of congregations and (f) banning of the sale of the Bible online in the People’s Republic of China.

Mark Field: We are concerned about developing restrictions on freedom of religion or belief in China. This includes reports that authorities are tightening control over how certain religions are practiced, including Christianity. The freedom to practise, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy.We are aware of credible reports of the closure or demolition of unregistered churches in some areas of China, including the Early Rain Covenant Church and the arrest and detention of its Pastor Wang Yi. British diplomats met with Chinese officials in January and expressed concerns on the pressures facing Christians and directly raised Pastor Wang’s case. Also in January, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief, raised concerns about the case in the House of Lords.We are also concerned by reports that individuals are being harassed or detained for their beliefs across China, and that new guidelines on religion may restrict lawful and peaceful observance. There is also evidence to suggest restrictions on sales of Bibles by unauthorised sellers are in place.The Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, has asked the Bishop of Truro to review what the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) can do to better support persecuted Christians worldwide, including in China. The Review will map levels of persecution and discrimination against Christians around the world; assess the impact of the FCO’s current and recent support; and make recommendations. At the publication of the Bishop’s interim report, the Foreign Secretary said “I look forward to seeing the Bishop’s final report in the summer, and identifying further specific steps the FCO can take to do more to address the fate of persecuted Christians around the world.”

China: Christianity

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Chinese Government on the arrest of over 100 members of the Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu on 9 December 2018.

Mark Field: We are concerned about developing restrictions on freedom of religion or belief in China. This includes reports that authorities are tightening control over how certain religions are practiced, including Christianity. The freedom to practise, change or share ones faith or belief without discrimination or violent opposition is a human right that all people should enjoy.We are aware of credible reports of the closure or demolition of unregistered churches in some areas of China, including the Early Rain Covenant Church and the arrest and detention of its Pastor Wang Yi. British diplomats met with Chinese officials in January and expressed concerns on the pressures facing Christians and directly raised Pastor Wang’s case. Also in January, Lord Ahmad, the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion or Belief, raised concerns about the case in the House of Lords.We are also concerned by reports that individuals are being harassed or detained for their beliefs across China, and that new guidelines on religion may restrict lawful and peaceful observance. There is also evidence to suggest restrictions on sales of Bibles by unauthorised sellers are in place.The Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, has asked the Bishop of Truro to review what the Foreign and Commonweatlh Office (FCO) can do to better support persecuted Christians worldwide, including in China. The Review will map levels of persecution and discrimination against Christians around the world; assess the impact of the FCO’s current and recent support; and make recommendations. At the publication of the Bishop’s interim report, the Foreign Secretary said “I look forward to seeing the Bishop’s final report in the summer, and identifying further specific steps the FCO can take to do more to address the fate of persecuted Christians around the world.”

Iran: Christianity

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to reports of prison sentences given to Victor Bet-Tamraz, Shamiram Issavi, Amin Afshar-Naderi and Hadi Asgari in Iran for practicing their beliefs, what assessment his Department has made of the safety of Christians in that country.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Iran's human rights record continues to be of serious concern to the UK, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has designated it as one of its Human Rights Priority Countries. The continued restrictions on freedoms of expression, religion and belief are deeply worrying. While some religious minorities are formally protected in the constitution, the reality is that many non-Muslims face discrimination. Despite constitutional recognition, the persecution of Christians has been continuous, systemic, and institutionalised. The Foreign Secretary ordered a review into the plight of persecuted Christians around the world. The interim report has been published and reviews the situation of Christian communities in Iran.

China: Islam

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the extent of demolition of Islamic religious sites in Xinjiang, China in each of the last five years.

Mark Field: We are aware of, and concerned by, reports of mosques, shrines, and other places of worship in Xinjiang being targeted by Chinese authorities. While we do not have an accurate measure on what proportion of mosques are being destroyed, available evidence, including that recently presented in the Guardian newspaper following a joint Guardian/Bellingcat investigation, suggests that it is significant. British diplomats in China visit Xinjiang every few months in order to see at first-hand the situation there. Their observations have supported much of the recent open source reporting about the restrictions targeted at specific ethnic and religious groups.We regularly raise our serious concerns about the situation in Xinjiang with the Chinese authorities at senior levels, and will continue to do so. At the 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council, the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion and Belief, Lord Ahmad, raised our concerns during his opening address on 25 February. The UK also spoke about Xinjiang during our “Item 4” national statement on 12 March, and co-sponsored and spoke at a side event on Xinjiang, which helped to raise awareness of the situation among the international community. The Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his last visit to China in July 2018. I also raised our concerns with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during his visit to China on 22 July 2018. Our Embassy in Beijing also regularly raises our concerns with the Chinese authorities.

China: Islam

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations his Department has made to the Chinese Government on the demolition of Islamic religious sites in Xinjiang in China.

Mark Field: We are aware of, and concerned by, reports of mosques, shrines, and other places of worship in Xinjiang being targeted by Chinese authorities. While we do not have an accurate measure on what proportion of mosques are being destroyed, available evidence, including that recently presented in the Guardian newspaper following a joint Guardian/Bellingcat investigation, suggests that it is significant. British diplomats in China visit Xinjiang every few months in order to see at first-hand the situation there. Their observations have supported much of the recent open source reporting about the restrictions targeted at specific ethnic and religious groups.We regularly raise our serious concerns about the situation in Xinjiang with the Chinese authorities at senior levels, and will continue to do so. At the 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council, the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion and Belief, Lord Ahmad, raised our concerns during his opening address on 25 February. The UK also spoke about Xinjiang during our “Item 4” national statement on 12 March, and co-sponsored and spoke at a side event on Xinjiang, which helped to raise awareness of the situation among the international community. The Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his last visit to China in July 2018. I, also raised our concerns with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during his visit to China on 22 July 2018. Our Embassy in Beijing also regularly raises our concerns with the Chinese authorities.

Yemen: Peace Negotiations

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the implementation of the Stockholm agreement by all parties to the war in Yemen.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK has played a central role in diplomatic efforts to seek a peaceful solution to the conflict in Yemen. Most recently, the Foreign Secretary hosted the Yemen Quad in London on 26 April, bringing together representatives from the US, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where members discussed the next steps in the UN-led peace process and how best to support the efforts of UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths. We will continue discussions with partners on how the UN Security Council can support the UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths on the political process and improving the humanitarian situation, central to which is the full implementation of agreements reached during the Stockholm talks. We welcome reports that Houthis forces have begun their withdrawal from the ports of Hodeidah, Saleef and Ras Issa and await independent verification of this by the UN.​

Burundi: Freedom of Expression

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Burundi authorities on violations of fundamental freedoms in that country.

Harriett Baldwin: Our Ambassador to Burundi, as well as the UK Special Envoy to the Great Lakes regularly make representations with Burundian counterparts and raise fundamental freedoms in Burundi. Recent discussions have taken place at numerous levels including the Foreign Minister and have covered the international NGO suspension, the closure of the UN Human Rights office and the ban of the BBC, on which the Foreign Secretary has expressed disappointment and called for the decision to be reversed.

Egypt: Religious Freedom

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Egyptian counterpart on the effect of laws restricting the construction of churches on religious freedom.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We continue to be concerned about restrictions on the construction of places of worship in Egypt. All religious minorities ought to be able practise their faith without constraints or discrimination. The 2016 Church Building Law represents a step forward in this area, increasing the number of registered churches in Egypt.We welcome other positive developments concerning religious freedom, including President Sisi's calls for peaceful coexistence and the Government of Egypt's expression of support for the rights of Christians and for religious tolerance. The Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, reaffirmed our mutual commitment to freedom of religion or belief during his visit to Cairo in November.

Syria: Military Intervention

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what diplomatic steps the Government plans to take with its allies in Syria to minimise the risk of a large scale assault and mass civilian casualties in Idlib.

Dr Andrew Murrison: ​We are gravely concerned by the offensive launched by the Syrian regime and Russia in Idlib. We made this clear at an emergency session of the UN Security Council and warned that a full-scale offensive would risk a humanitarian catastrophe. We with the US, France and eight other countries issued a joint statement on 10 May and we released a further statement with France and Germany on 13 May. We will continue to call out the regime and its backers for their actions and to press all sides to return to the ceasefire agreed last September at Sochi.

Cabinet Office

Fuels: Tax Evasion

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 23 April 2018 to Question 136367 on Fuels: Tax Evasion, whether any legal action followed those arrests.

Mr David Lidington: Of the three arrests made between 01 January 2017 and 31 March 2018 for fuel fraud, two were reported to the Public Prosecution Service in December 2018 while one remains under investigation pending report.

Gold and Foreign Exchange Reserves

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the gold reserves of the Bank of England were on 30 June (a) 1998, (b) 2008 and (c) 2018.

Mr David Lidington: The Bank of England does not own any gold reserves of its own, except for two bars held for display at the Bank of England Museum. However, the Bank provides safe custody for the UK's gold reserves and for other customers. It has only started recently publishing the weight of all the gold in its custody on its website, which includes data back to 2011. On 30 June 2018, it held 166,516,000 fine troy ounces of gold. There is no equivalent data available for 1998 and 2008.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster: Energy

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the quantity was of (a) electricity and (b) natural gas used by (i) Cabinet Office, (ii) 10 Downing Street, (iii) the Crown Commercial Service, (iv) Government Property Agency, (v) the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and (vi) the Privy Council Office in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Mr David Lidington: Cabinet Office electricity and natural gas consumption and costs are detailed below. 10 Downing Street is an integral part of the Cabinet Office, and therefore their consumption and costs are included in Cabinet Office consumption and costs below. The Crown Commercial Service, Government Property Agency, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and the Privy Council Office are occupiers within other buildings and would be recharged via their service charges. Usage (kWh)Cost ElectricityGasElectricityGas20163,372,255317,656236,058£12,32520174,656,0541,476,212293,939£44,78320184,649,7311,513,230378,811£42,258

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster: Energy

Stuart C. McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what was the cost was of (a) electricity and (b) natural gas used by (i) Cabinet Office, (ii) 10 Downing Street, (iii) the Crown Commercial Service, (iv) Government Property Agency, (v) the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and (vi) the Privy Council Office in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Mr David Lidington: Cabinet Office electricity and natural gas consumption and costs are detailed below. 10 Downing Street is an integral part of the Cabinet Office, and therefore their consumption and costs are included in Cabinet Office consumption and costs below. The Crown Commercial Service, Government Property Agency, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and the Privy Council Office are occupiers within other buildings and would be recharged via their service charges. Usage (kWh)Cost ElectricityGasElectricityGas20163,372,255317,656236,058£12,32520174,656,0541,476,212293,939£44,78320184,649,7311,513,230378,811£42,258

Belfast Agreement

Lady Hermon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he will publish the legal advice on the effect of the proposed Withdrawal Agreement on the Belfast Good Friday Agreement; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington: On 5 December, the Government published the Attorney General’s advice to Cabinet on the Withdrawal Agreement and the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/exiting-the-eu-publication-of-legal-advice.

Government: Loans

Frank Field: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that all loans under UK law given to governments or with government guarantees are disclosed publicly at the time they are made and comply with the law of the country concerned.

Mr David Lidington: Given the complex international nature of sovereign debt, we continue to believe that internationally-agreed approaches are the most effective way to improve sovereign debt transparency and sustainability. Sovereign governments are ultimately responsible for their own borrowing, and the UK supports the IMF and World Bank’s efforts to improve the capacity and capabilities of sovereign borrowers to fulfil this responsibility. The UK also recognizes that official and private creditors have an important role to play in securing debt transparency and sustainability. The G20 agreed Operational Guidelines for Sustainable Financing for official creditors in 2017. The UK is now working through the G20 to monitor an industry-led initiative by the Institute of International Finance (IIF) to improve the transparency of lending of private creditors.UK-based lenders are also already subject to extensive prudential disclosure requirements under UK law. The Capital Requirements Regulation requires firms to disclose the geographic distribution of their credit exposures, including those to central banks and governments, if the loans are material.

Civil Service: Scotland

John Lamont: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government is taking to increase the size of the civil service in Scotland.

Oliver Dowden: The Government committed in the 2018 Government Estates Strategy to locate more CivilService roles into the regions and nations of the United Kingdom. To deliver on thiscommitment, the Cabinet Office is co-ordinating such activity under the Places for Growthprogramme. This programme will take a place-based approach to relocating roles thatensures we have the skills and capacity in the right places to enable organisations andcities to flourishThe Places for Growth team have been engaging with local stakeholders across the UK,including in Scotland, to build this nationwide picture of skills and specialisms. This informsthe programme’s support of departmental estates and workforce planning for theforthcoming Spending Review, to ensure alignment with Places for Growth principlesDepartments will be required to relocate roles, including senior roles.The Civil Service workforce survey (2018) shows that the size of the Civil Service inScotland is 43,120, (including 17,340 in the Scottish Government).

Cabinet Office: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Oliver Dowden: Cabinet Office are taking the issue of Bullying and Harassment seriously, and have developed a Bullying, Harassment and Discrimination Action plan to reduce the incidence of these behaviours within the Cabinet Office. Cabinet Office does not hold central records covering all cases of Bullying and Harassment. In general, in line with Cabinet Office policy complaints are handled locally by line managers within the business unit, either through an informal or formal process. Cabinet Office uses the annual People Survey to collect data about Bullying and Harassment levels in the department. People Survey results are available here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/civil-service-people-surveys

Department of Health and Social Care

Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve (a) early diagnosis and (b) treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Seema Kennedy: The United Kingdom Rare Disease Strategy, published in 2013, sets out our commitment to raising awareness about all rare diseases including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and our strategic vision for improving the lives of all those affected. The Strategy promotes improvements to ensure that people living with a rare disease receive high-quality care.The Government recognizes the need for awareness raising and training of health care professionals for rare diseases. This is being taken forward through the work of the UK Rare Diseases Policy Board and NHS England’s Rare Diseases Implementation plan, which commits NHS England to engaging with the Royal College of General Practitioners (GPs) and the Nursing and Midwifery Council on opportunities for GPs and health visitors to recognise and facilitate earlier diagnosis of rare diseases.There are limited drug treatment options for IPF and two drugs, Pirfenidone and Nintedanib, are commissioned following National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Technology Appraisals. Alongside this, the Department funds research into rare diseases such as IPF through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

Haemophilia: Medical Treatments

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that haemophilia patients receive (a) appropriate access to physiotherapy, (b) a regular clinical review, and (c) tailored dosing of treatments in accordance with NHS England’s service specification.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the Commercial Medicines Unit’s national tender framework for factor VIII haemophilia products on patient access to extended half-life medicines.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he NHS England is taking to ensure that patients with bleeding disorders have adequate access to treatment options that meet individual patient need.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether  NHS England has made an assessment of the adequacy of the availability of Haemtrack in Haemophilia centres.

Seema Kennedy: Regular clinical reviews of patients with severe and moderate haemophilia and access to physiotherapy services are specified within the service specification for haemophilia which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/b05-haemophilia.pdfIn addition, the Haemophilia Quality Dashboard has a metric specifically in relation to the proportion of severe Haemophilia patients who have had an annual review. Where local commissioning teams are made aware that haemophilia patients do not have access to appropriate care then local action plans will be agreed to rectify this.The service specification for haemophilia currently does not require that haemophilia patients receive tailored dosing of treatment. However, commissioners consider that this would represent good practice. NHS England has supported clinical teams to provide tailored dosing, within the parameters of the agreed commissioning criteria and guidelines, by making a wide range of products available for reimbursement.To date, all licensed and currently marketed products for haemophilia are available for reimbursement. Some products have been limited to Haemophilia Comprehensive Care Centres due to specific requirements for supporting services and expertise (these are products for patients with inhibitors).NHS England wants all patients with lifelong conditions to be engaged in the management of their condition. NHS England, in conjunction with the United Kingdom Haemophilia Centre Doctors’ Organisation (UKHCDO), believes that tools like Haemtrack are useful in achieving this aim. NHS England is aware of evidence that indicates, but does not confirm, that patients who use Haemtrack have better clinical outcomes than patients who do not. NHS England supports UKHCDO via the National Haemophilia Database to provide further data and evidence demonstrating the value and clinical benefits of Haemtrack.The Commercial Medicines Unit has two national framework agreements in place that provide access to recombinant factor VIII (rFVIII) haemophilia products. The one licensed Extended Half Life-Factor VIII product available in the UK has been funded since September 2016 and a significant number of patients are now treated with this product. NHS England and other UK Health Commissioners work closely with clinicians and patient representatives to ensure that the frameworks continue to meet clinical need whilst delivering good value to the National Health Service.

Haemophilia: Medical Treatments

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy that NHS England include haemophilia as a condition area in the Getting It Right First Time programme.

Stephen Hammond: The Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme aims to drive improvements in medical and surgical specialties through clinical leadership and the use of data to identify and reduce unwarranted variation in practice. By tackling variations in the way services are delivered across the National Health Service, and by sharing best practice between trusts, GIRFT identifies changes that will help improve care and patient outcomes, as well as delivering efficiencies such as the reduction of unnecessary procedures and cost savings.Although there are no specific plans to include haemophilia as a condition area in the GIRFT programme currently, the ambition is that GIRFT will continue to expand to other medical specialities. Currently, areas are prioritised based on opportunity for improvements in patient care, suspected degree of variation and wide strategic priorities. Some examples of these work streams are lung cancer, paediatric critical care and neonatal intensive care.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care,  pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2019 to Question 231466 on Hospitals: Infectious Diseases, whether work of Public Health England will also include as assessment of the effect of changes to ophthalmic surgical practice on trends in the level of risk of infection rates in hospitals.

Seema Kennedy: Public Health England does not currently include ophthalmic surgery as part of mandatory or voluntary surveillance of surgical site infections.

Ophthalmic Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2019 to Question 231467 on Ophthalmic Services, whether he has made an assessment of the ability for clinicians to take into account patients’ wishes for concomitant treatment in relation to potential restrictions of the 2019/2020 NHS Tariff.

Seema Kennedy: For the 2017/19 national tariff (which was set for two years), the prices for BZ91 were manually increased above the initially modelled level (based on 2014/15 reference costs) following feedback from the ophthalmology Expert Working Group (EWG). For 2019/20, the EWG recommended that the prices for BZ91 should not be increased and should remain as modelled (based on 2016/17 reference costs).The EWG also confirmed that minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) and cataract activity are commonly done together and it would not usually be in the patient’s best interest to do them separately. The EWG advised that BZ91 was appropriate for combined MIGS and cataract activity – a MIGS procedure plus a cataract procedure should not receive over twice as much as either procedure alone.

Health Education: Air Pollution

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department is making on producing a public information campaign to educate the general public on the health impacts of air pollution, particularly in instances of moderate or high pollution episodes.

Seema Kennedy: Public Health England and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are exploring whether social marketing can assist in awareness-raising about air pollution.The Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU) is planning a national-level campaign to support Clean Air Zones (CAZ) from summer 2019. This will raise awareness of the risks presented by high concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and the implementation of charging CAZ. It will also promote long-term behaviour change by encouraging the public to change travel habits and reduce NO2 emissions.The JAQU has also provided a CAZ communications toolkit to support local authorities in their local communications work. It contains key messages, frequently asked questions, useful statistics, infographics and other content to ensure a consistent approach is taken to raising awareness and to encourage drivers to consider alternative options in terms of travel and vehicle choice.Defra is developing a communication strategy on domestic combustion for launch before the next winter burning season.

Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act 2018

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timeframe is for bringing into force the provisions of the Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act 2018.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We remain committed to implementing fully the provisions within the Mental Health Units (Use of Force) Act 2018. We will work closely with key stakeholders in preparing the relevant statutory guidance and bring the legislation into force in due course.

Phenylketonuria

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to extend free prescriptions to people with phenylketonuria; and if he will make a statement.

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of adding phenylketonuria to the list of medical exemptions for prescription charges.

Seema Kennedy: The Department has no current plans to extend free prescriptions or to assess the merits of adding phenylketonuria (PKU) to the list of medical conditions that provide exemption from prescription charges. Extensive arrangements are already in place to help people afford National Health Service prescriptions. These include a broad range of NHS prescription charge exemptions, for which someone with PKU may qualify.To support those with greatest need who do not qualify for an exemption, prescription prepayment certificates are available. A holder of a 12-month certificate can get all the prescriptions they need for just £2 per week.

Phenylketonuria

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the NICE appraisal of Kuvan will consider the increased prevalence of neuropsychiatric comorbidities in adults with phenylketonuria.

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2018 to Question 190518 on Sapropterin, whether the NICE appraisal of Kuvan will take into account the costs from NHS funded treatments that can be avoided such as food supplements.

Seema Kennedy: In developing its recommendations on Kuvan, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) will consider all the health-related costs and benefits associated with the treatment in accordance with its published methods and processes and the scope for the appraisal that has been developed in consultation with stakeholders; potentially including any costs from National Health Service funded treatments that can be avoided such as food supplements. The NICE appraisal of Kuvan is now underway and NICE expects to publish final guidance next year.

Pancreatic Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a dataset for (a) pancreatic cancer and (b) gastrointestinal cancer NHS waiting times.

Seema Kennedy: NHS England and Public Health England are considering new ways of aggregating and sharing waiting times data to ensure that patients and clinicians can be best informed, whilst ensuring that risks of disclosure are managed.

NHS: Drugs

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve the administration of medicines in NHS trusts.

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress has been made on implementing electronic prescribing and medicines administration systems across all NHS trusts by 2021.

Caroline Dinenage: Work has commenced on a variety of projects to help improve the administration of medicines in National Health Service trusts.Following the announcement of £75 million of funding for ePrescribing and Medicines Administration (ePrescribing or ePMA) systems, work has commenced to accelerate the uptake and implementation across the NHS. Funding was provided to 13 trusts in 2018/19 all of whom have now commenced work. Applications for the second wave of funding have been received – a total of 48 bids are currently being reviewed for 2019/20 funding. A further round of funding is also planned for 2020/21.Additionally, the Global Digital Exemplar programme is providing funding to support the roll-out of new, integrated technologies including ePrescribing and closed loop medicines administration and will share their learning as they make progress.The sites that have led the way with closed loop medicines administration have provided valuable learning for what is a relatively new approach to support this process in England. Early work is demonstrating a positive impact on medication related administration error.

Maternity Services: Vacancies

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to address staff shortages in maternity units; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Health Education England released its strategy to increase the numbers of staff working in maternity services within the Maternity Workforce Strategy. This can be found at the following link:https://www.hee.nhs.uk/our-work/maternity/maternity-workforce-transformation-strategy

Social Services: Finance

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure that long term adult social care funding settlements take account of the number of working-aged disabled people in need of that care.

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that disabled people have access to the care and support they need.

Caroline Dinenage: The future funding for social care will be considered alongside other local government services at the Spending Review.The Government is undertaking a review of the relative needs and resources of local authorities in England, with a view to setting fresh baseline funding levels. The recent consultation on this proposed a specific formula for adult social care that includes cost drivers for both older people and working age adults.All councils have statutory duties to look after the vulnerable, elderly and disabled people in their area. By passing the Care Act 2014, this Government established a national threshold that defines the care needs that local authorities must meet. This eliminates the postcode lottery of eligibility across England. We need a sustainable social care system to ensure services continue to deliver for our ageing population and the increasing number of people of working age who require care services, which is why the Government has committed to publishing a Green Paper at the earliest opportunity which will set out our proposals for reform.

Asthma: Medical Treatments

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of recent trends in the level of prescription charges on the ability of people with a diagnosis of asthma to access the medication they require.

Seema Kennedy: Extensive arrangements are already in place to help people afford National Health Service prescriptions, which rose by 20 pence from £8.80 to £9 on 1 April 2019. These include a broad range of NHS prescription charge exemptions, for which someone with asthma may qualify.To support those with greatest need who do not qualify for an exemption, the cost of the prescription pre-payment certificates were frozen for another year. A holder of a 12-month certificate can get all the prescriptions they need for just £2 per week.

Pregnancy: Mental Illness

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of (a) identification and (b) treatment of perinatal mental illnesses; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department is committed to improving both the detection and treatment of perinatal mental illness. The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health committed to invest £365 million from 2015/16 to 2020/21 in perinatal mental health services to ensure that by 2020/21 at least 30,000 more women each year are able to access evidence-based specialist mental health care during the perinatal period. The NHS Long Term Plan, published in January 2019, includes a commitment for a further 24,000 women to be able to access specialist perinatal mental health care by 2023/24. Specialist care will also be available from preconception to 24 months after birth, which will provide an extra year of support. Support will also be extended to fathers and partners of women accessing specialist perinatal mental health services and maternity outreach clinics.

Mental Health Services: Children

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children have waited for over six months for mental health treatment following a referral in West Yorkshire.

Jackie Doyle-Price: This data is not available in the format requested.

Mental Health Services: Children

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for children receiving initial mental health treatment in West Yorkshire.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Protecting our children’s mental health is a priority for this Government and a core part of the NHS Long Term Plan. The National Health Service has set a goal of an extra 345,000 children and young people, aged 0-25, receiving support via NHS-funded mental health services by 2023/24. Close to 325,000 children and young people have been treated through NHS commissioned community services in 2017/18. We are on track to deliver the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health’s commitment to improve care and extend access to 70,000 more children and young people by 2020/21. The recent ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision: a Green Paper’ aims to improve provision of support for all children and young people through its three key proposals:- Incentivising every school/college to identify and train Designated Senior Lead for Mental Health;- Creating new Mental Health Support Teams in/around schools; and- Piloting a four-week waiting time for specialist NHS services. Clinical commissioning groups in West Yorkshire are responsible for ensuring adequate access to mental health treatment locally.

Pregnancy: Screening

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's timetable is for the national roll-out of non-invasive prenatal testing, as recommended by the UK National Screening Committee in November 2016.

Seema Kennedy: The procurement for providers to undertake the evaluative roll out of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) in England is currently being undertaken on behalf of Public Health England by NHS England as part of the Genomic Testing Services procurement.There has been a legal challenge which relates only to the NIPT element of the current procurement which means that there is currently an automatic suspension in place. The extent of the delay will depend on how the litigation proceeds.

Genetics: Health Services

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to undertake a public consultation with stakeholders on the development of the National Genomic Healthcare Strategy.

Caroline Dinenage: In developing the National Genomic Healthcare Strategy, the Government will undertake wide ranging and comprehensive engagement, involving detailed discussions with patient and public groups, researchers, charities and industry. This will be guided by the National Genomics Board, which oversees the Government’s work to maintain the United Kingdom’s position as the world’s leading centre for genomic medicine and research.Although this does not involve a formal public consultation document, patients and the public will be key to developing the strategy, and we will utilise a wide range of existing public and patient engagement groups to do so.

Sugar

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for the publication of the sugar reduction progress report by Public Health England.

Seema Kennedy: Public Health England (PHE) is responsible for overseeing the Sugar Reduction and Wider Reformulation Programme on behalf of the Government. PHE is planning to publish the second-year progress report for the sugar reduction programme at the end of summer 2019.

Health Professions: Debts

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of clearing a medical students student debt in return for that student committing to long-term work in GP offices.

Seema Kennedy: There are currently no plans to assess the potential merits of clearing a medical student's debt in return for that student committing to long-term work in general practitioner offices in England.

Mental Health Services: Birkenhead

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will review the (a) causes of, (b) prevention measures for and (c) relief available for  (i) depression and (ii) poor mental health in Birkenhead.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Clinical commissioning groups are responsible for ensuring adequate provision and access to mental health services for their local populations and keeping services under review.The local Primary Care Network, including mental health services, is working in close collaboration with primary care and wider health and care organisations to specifically target areas of need.

Dementia: Research

Stephen Metcalfe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was allocated from the public purse to dementia research in 2017-18.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government remains strongly committed to supporting research into dementia and the United Kingdom research community is playing a significant role in the global effort to find a cure or a major disease-modifying treatment by 2025. The Department funds research on health and social care through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The usual practice of the NIHR is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics such as dementia. Research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health including dementia. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity. NIHR funding for dementia research was £43.0 million in 2017/18, having increased from £27 million in 2013/14. Government spending overall on dementia research is running ahead of the Government’s 2020 Dementia Challenge commitment to maintain this at £300 million over five years. The total in 2017/18 was £82.5 million (£43 million via the NIHR, £36.3 million via the Medical Research Council and £3.2 million via the Economic and Social Research Council).

Dementia: Research

Stephen Metcalfe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage more people to participate in dementia research.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government’s Dementia 2020 Challenge aims to make England the best country in the world for dementia care, support, awareness and research. The Government is committed to supporting research into dementia to find a disease-modifying treatment by 2025, and to help people with dementia live well with the condition. People participating in research are a vital part of this effort.Significant progress has been made to increase participation, notably via Join Dementia Research. This service is run by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR, which is funded by the Department), and the charities Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research UK. To date, 40,286 people have registered with the service to be informed about research projects in which they may be able to participate, and 12,881 of these have joined in dementia studies.

Dementia: Research

Stephen Metcalfe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to upskill more healthcare professionals to signpost patients with dementia to dementia research opportunities.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government’s Dementia 2020 Challenge aims to make England the best country in the world for dementia care, support, awareness and research. The Government is committed to supporting research into dementia to find a disease-modifying treatment by 2025, and to help people with dementia live well with the condition. People participating in research are central to this effort, as are the health and social care staff who support their participation. We expect all people who are newly diagnosed with dementia, and their carers, to receive information on opportunities to take part in research into dementia. By 2020, we expect all relevant staff to have received appropriate dementia training. This should include training relevant staff to be able to signpost interested individuals towards research via the Join Dementia Research service. We are also currently exploring options for increasing take-up of the more advanced Tier 2 training to everyone who needs it.

Dementia: Research

Stephen Metcalfe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he intends to make representations to the Chancellor of the Exchequer to allocate more funding to dementia research in the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government remains strongly committed to supporting research into dementia and the United Kingdom research community is playing a significant role in the global effort to find a cure or a major disease-modifying treatment by 2025. In terms of funding, the future of budgets outside of the NHS England resource settlement will be confirmed later this year in the Spending Review 2019. The Government has made clear that the number one spending priority is the National Health Service, which will get £33.9 billion more in cash terms by 2023-24, compared to 2018-19. Discussions with HM Treasury are ongoing.

Department of Health and Social Care: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last three years.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: The information is not held in the format requested.

Health Services: Foreign Nationals

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the costs recovered from foreign nationals who received treatment on the NHS in (a) Mid Essex, (b) North East Essex and (c) the UK in the last five years for which data is available.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not hold data on the costs recovered from foreign nationals who have received treatment on the National Health Service in Mid Essex and North East Essex. Data on the costs recovered from overseas visitors, including United Kingdom nationals resident overseas, is published in NHS trust and NHS foundation trust annual accounts.The total income identified from chargeable overseas visitors receiving NHS treatment is set out in the following table. YearTotal income*2017-18£391 million2016-17£352 million2015-16£290 million2014-15£97 million2013-14£100 millionNote:* includes direct charges, reimbursement from European Economic Area member states and immigration health surcharge

NHS Scotland: Drugs

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the progress by NHS Scotland in securing supplies of Orkambi and Symkevi.

Seema Kennedy: The Department has made no assessment. All issues relating to healthcare provision in Scotland, such as the availability of Orkambi and Symkevi are matters for the devolved administrations.

England Infected Blood Support Scheme

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, from which budget in his Department the increase in funding for the England Infected Blood Support Scheme has been allocated.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department undertakes a comprehensive annual planning exercise each year to allocate resources. The increase in infected blood payments was factored into this exercise for 2019/20 and scope was found to ensure that the costs can be met.

Radiology: Recruitment

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase recruitment of radiologists.

Seema Kennedy: In the Cancer Workforce Plan for England published in December 2017, Health Education England set out the case for additional training support for clinical radiology. The table below shows the increase in accepted post numbers, by recruitment year. Fill rates for clinical radiology in England over the last seven years have always been 100%. Clinical radiology is a popular speciality and each year has on average double the number of appointable candidates for the number of entry points (offers of places to commence the training programme).  2013201420152016201720182019Number of accepted radiology posts183186212212226234240Source: Health Education EnglandLocally, responsibility for assessing and managing staffing levels, including specialty staff, rests with individual National Health Service trusts and their boards who are best placed to decide how many staff they need to provide a given service.

Mental Health Services: Students

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of NHS mental health support for university students.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Mental health is a priority for this Government. That is why the Department of Health and Social Care is continuing to work closely with the Department for Education to improve the mental health of university students. To support this, the NHS Long Term Plan commits to a comprehensive expansion of mental health services, including a new approach to mental health services for people aged 18-25, supporting transitions to college and to adulthood, with services being adapted to create a comprehensive offer for 0 to 25 year olds. NHS England is working closely with Universities UK through the Mental Health in Higher Education programme to build the capability and capacity of universities to improve student welfare services and improve access to mental health services for the student population, including focusing on suicide reduction, and improving access to psychological therapies to support and treat students suffering from stress and anxiety.

Pharmacy: Access

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that patients have adequate access to pharmacy services.

Seema Kennedy: In December 2016, the Department introduced the Pharmacy Access Scheme (PhAS), as part of a wider package of reforms to the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework. The PhAS helps to support the financial viability of pharmacies in areas where there are fewer pharmacies.The Department continues to monitor closely the market to identify and address issues that may impact patient access to pharmacy services. Access to National Health Service pharmaceutical services remains good: there are over 11,500 pharmacies in England, an increase of approximately 12% in the last decade.

Stem Cells: Donors

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to engage with BAME communities on stem cell donations.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Since 2011 the Department has provided more than £26 million in financial support to NHS Blood and Transplant and Anthony Nolan to enable the establishment of a unified United Kingdom Stem Cell Registry and improve stem cell donation. This includes improving equity of access to unrelated donor stem cell transplantation for Black African Minority Ethnic (BAME) patients through targeted recruitment to the UK Stem Cell Registry and the Department has set specific targets about the proportion of donors that must be from BAME backgrounds.

Attorney General

Attorney General: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Lucy Frazer: There have been no recorded cases of bullying and harassment in the Attorney General’s Office in any of the last five years.

Department for Education

Erasmus+ Programme

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the (a) British Council and (b) European Commission on ensuring Erasmus+ bids for 2019-20 are ratified as soon as possible.

Chris Skidmore: On behalf of the UK government and the European Commission, the British Council, in partnership with Ecorys UK, is responsible for the delivery of the Erasmus+ programme in the UK jointly forming the Erasmus+ UK National Agency. In this role, the department works very closely with the British Council and is in regular contact on a wide range of issues relating to the Erasmus+ programme. This includes the question of ratification of the bids for funding submitted under the Erasmus+ 2019 Call.While the UK remains a Member State of the European Union, we continue to participate in all business-as-usual discussions, such as the Erasmus+ Programme Committee, which include representatives from the European Commission. My officials continue to engage with the European Commission on issues relating to Erasmus+ and, together with the Erasmus+ UK National Agency, are working to ensure that beneficiaries are provided with as much clarity on the status of their bids for funding. Further information on this will be provided as soon as possible.

Ofsted: Finance

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what funding his Department has provided to Ofsted in each financial year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: Holding answer received on 13 May 2019



Ofsted’s budget is set by HM Treasury at the Spending Review. Other government departments can provide extra funding to Ofsted to provide programmes on their behalf or due to changes in departmental policy. The table below gives an overview of Ofsted’s net budget and income from 2010.  2010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-192019-20Net Budgets (£ millions)189171168168.5162.5155145135.7129124Income (£ millions)16151515151618202226

Educational Psychology

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of  local authorities currently without any educational psychology service.

Nadhim Zahawi: ​The information requested is not held centrally. It is not possible to assess whether there are any local authorities without an educational psychologist (EP) service as no information is collected on outsourced EP services.The department’s main data source on teachers and other school staff is the annual School Workforce Census. The collection includes a count of educational psychologists (EP) employed centrally by local authorities and any that are reported as being directly employed by schools. It does not show any that are employed on an occasional basis. It also does not include outsourcing of EP provision, nor take into account any sharing of EP provision across local authorities.

Degrees

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to promote double degrees.

Chris Skidmore: Higher education providers are autonomous bodies and decide what courses to deliver.Dual Degree programmes, sometimes known as double degree programmes, can attract student support if the course is an eligible course, as defined in the Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011. Designated courses must be substantially provided in the UK, which means that at least half the teaching and supervision is provided in the UK. Authority Funded institutions should also comply with maximum fee limits set out in the Higher Education (Basic Amount) (England) Regulations 2016 and the Higher Education (Higher Amount) (England) Regulations 2016.

Students: EU Countries

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the number of UK students studying in the EU and the number of EU students studying in the UK in the latest period for which data is available.

Chris Skidmore: The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) publishes information on international students in Higher Education Institutions in England, by country of domicile (based on the student’s permanent home address prior to entry to the course). Using HESA, the latest data available shows that in academic year 2017/18, there were approximately 139,000 EU domiciled students studying in UK Higher Education Institutions.Similarly, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) publish data on international tertiary education enrolments for countries across the world. The latest data available from UNESCO shows that in the calendar year 2016, there were 16,000 UK students studying a full course in EU countries.

Schools: Police

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools have designated police officers in (a) London and (b) the UK.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is not held centrally. Many schools have links with their local police forces and police officers play an important role in schools, engaging and mentoring pupils. These are local arrangements, agreed between schools and the police.

Free School Meals: Wolverhampton North East

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) primary and (b) secondary pupils received free school meals in Wolverhampton North East constituency in each year since 2010.

Nadhim Zahawi: The number of pupils eligible for and claiming free school meals (FSM) in England is published in the annual ‘Schools, pupils and their characteristics’ statistical release. This information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2018.Information for earlier years (from 2010 onwards) can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-school-and-pupil-numbers.

Special Educational Needs: Finance

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on additional funding for special educational needs and disabilities services in the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review.

Nadhim Zahawi: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education frequently discusses matters of shared interest with HM Treasury ministers, including funding for special educational needs and disabilities.We are committed to supporting local authorities in tackling cost pressures on their high needs budgets. In December 2018 we allocated an additional £250 million up to 2020, on top of the £6 billion we had already promised nationally, and in the run up to the Spending Review we will continue to consider the level of funding that is needed.

Pupils: Absenteeism

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the number of unauthorised school absences in (a) Witham constituency, (b) Essex and c) the UK in the last three years for which data is available.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of (a) unauthorised and (b) persistent absences of students from school.

Nick Gibb: It is a priority to reduce overall school absence as part of the Government’s ambition to create a world-class education system.Data on the number of unauthorised absences are published in the termly “Pupil absence in schools in England” statistical releases, and can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-pupil-absence.Information for each school, local authority and England is provided in the underlying data. Information by local authority and England is also provided in the “National and local authority” tables.The Department has already taken a number of steps to reduce the number of unauthorised absence and tackle persistent absence. In 2013, the Government amended legislation to make it clear that leave of absence could be authorised by maintained schools only in exceptional circumstances. It is up to individual schools to decide what constitutes exceptional circumstances.Overall school attendance is improving, and absence rates have followed a general downward trend since 2006-7. The Department recognises that persistent absence is hard to tackle. Children may be persistently absent from school for a number of reasons including long term sickness.To enable schools to act earlier in dealing with patterns of poor attendance, the Department has tightened up the definition of persistent absence in national statistics and equipped schools and local authorities with a range of sanctions they can use to tackle poor attendance. This includes penalty notices, parenting orders, fast track programmes, parenting contracts, and ultimately prosecution.

Special Educational Needs

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average waiting time was for a SEND assessment after a child was referred by a teacher in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support is available for a pupil waiting for a SEND assessment; and what the average cost was per pupil receiving such an assessment in the most recent period for which figures are available..

Nadhim Zahawi: Schools (and further education colleges, sixth form colleges and 16-19 academies) are required to identify and address the special educational needs (SEN) of the pupils they support and to use their best endeavours to make sure that a child or young person who has SEN gets the support they need. This is outlined in the statutory SEN Code of Practice. The school should assess the child, plan an intervention if a learning difficulty is identified, implement the intervention and then review the outcome and progressively repeat this cycle until the child’s learning difficulty is properly supported. This type of support is called SEN Support and the cyclical process is referred to as a ‘graduated approach’ to meeting children’s needs. This process should take place regardless of whether a child has been referred for an education, health and care (EHC) needs assessment by the local authority. Information regarding the average waiting time and the average cost of SEND assessments is not held by the department. However, information is published on the number and percentage of new education, health and care plans that are issued within 20 weeks of referral in the annual ‘Statements of SEN and EHC plans’ statistical release. Information for the most recent period is published in table 8 of the release found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statements-of-sen-and-ehc-plans-england-2018.

Special Educational Needs

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the change in the level of spending on SEND provision per pupil with special educational needs or disabilities has been since 2015.

Nadhim Zahawi: We do not collect information on the spending by schools on individual pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). Support for those with more complex SEND are funded through the local authorities high needs budgets.Our total high needs funding allocations since 2015 are:YearAmount2015-16£5.2 billion2016-17£5.3 billion2017-18£5.8 billion2018-19*£6.1 billion2019-20*£6.3 billion The amounts between financial years are not directly comparable due to structural changes in the high needs funding baseline.*Both of these years include £125 million additional funding, which was announced in December 2018.The total level of local authorities’ high needs gross expenditure, not including place funding, can be found in the section 251 outturn data, and these are as follows:YearAmount2015-16£3.96 billion2016-17£4.21 billion2017-18£4.50 billion2018-19*£4.46 billion*These years use high needs budget data, rather than outturn data, as we have not yet published the high needs outturns.The majority of high needs funding is directed towards pupils with education, health and care plans (EHCP). The number of pupils each year with plans can be found in the school census data, which is published in January. The numbers for each year are as follows:YearNumber2015240,1632016256,3152017287,2902018319,819 The number of pupils with SEND in 2019 has not yet been published. This figure is an amalgamation of EHCP and Statements of SEND, but this does not include Learning Difficulty Assessments (LDA), and so is not an accurate comparison year-on-year. LDAs were phased out with the introduction of EHCPs, and the last LDAs were phased out of the system in 2016.

Overseas Students: EU Nationals

Emma Dent Coad: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to publish the (a) fee status and (b) loan eligibility of EU undergraduate students commencing courses at UK higher education providers in the 2020-21 academic year.

Chris Skidmore: We recognise how important it is that students and institutions have information on eligibility for student support before applications for courses open.Applications for courses starting in academic year 2020/21 do not open until September 2019. We will provide sufficient notice on fee arrangements for prospective EU students (studying in England) ahead of the 2020/21 academic year and subsequent years in the future.

Overseas Students: EU Nationals

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether EU students enrolling on English higher education courses in the academic year 2020-21 will be eligible for home fee status and financial support.

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to publish the (a) fee status and (b) loan eligibility of EU undergraduate students commencing courses at English higher education providers in the 2020-21 academic year.

Chris Skidmore: We recognise how important it is that students and institutions have information on eligibility for student support before applications for courses open.Applications for courses starting in academic year 2020/21 do not open until September 2019. We will provide sufficient notice for prospective EU students on fee arrangements ahead of the 2020/2021 academic year and subsequent years in the future.

Education and Skills Funding Agency: Registration

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the timeframe is for the Register of Training Organisations be open to new organisations.

Anne Milton: The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) has not set a date for the opening of the Register of Training Organisations (RoTO). The ESFA publishes information on its website, which will confirm any future opening dates for the RoTO: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sfa-register-of-training-organisations#market-entry-pre-qualification-process-guidance.

Railways: Concessions

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the expenditure by local authorities on the provision of free rail passes for pupils (a) up to the age of 16 to travel to their nearest school and (b) from families on maximum working tax credit or entitlement to free school meals; and how many school pupils benefit from such rail passes.

Nick Gibb: ​Local authorities have a statutory duty under section 508B of the Education Act 1996 to make travel arrangements to enable all eligible children of compulsory school age to attend their nearest suitable school. For low income families, there are additional rights to free home to school transport where children are entitled to Free School Meals or whose parents are in receipt of the maximum Working Tax Credit. It is for local authorities to decide how to fulfil that duty. They may, if they wish, provide pupils with rail passes. The information requested is not held centrally, regarding pupil numbers or detailed local authority expenditure.

Railways: Concessions

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate his Department has made of the expenditure by local authorities on provision of (a) free or reduced cost rail travel for young people continuing in education beyond the age of 16, (b) rail passes for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities or mobility problems to get to school in the last 12 months.

Anne Milton: The statutory responsibility for transport to education or training for 16 to 18 year olds rests with local authorities and they are expected to set out appropriate plans which reflect local needs and circumstances. Local authorities are required under Section 251 of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 to prepare and submit statements about planned and actual expenditure on education and children and young people’s services to my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education. The most recent data for 2017/18 is available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/section-251-2017-to-2018. However, these annual statements do not include the level of detail needed to estimate a local authority’s expenditure on free or reduced cost rail travel for young people, including those with special educational needs and disability or mobility problems.

Pupil Exclusions: Ethnic Groups

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of school exclusions for each ethnic group.

Nick Gibb: The rate of exclusion varies by pupil ethnicity, with pupils of some ethnic groups more likely to be excluded and others less.[1] Last March, the Government commissioned Edward Timpson to explore how head teachers use exclusion and why some groups of pupils are more likely to be excluded than others. New analysis undertaken for the Timpson Review shows that some ethnic groups are more likely to be excluded after controlling for other observable characteristics. For example, after accounting for other factors, Black Caribbean children are around 1.7 times more likely to be permanently excluded compared to White British children, while Mixed White and Black Caribbean children are around 1.6 times more likely, and Indian and Bangladeshi pupils are around half as likely. Equally, children in some ethnic groups do not appear to be permanently excluded at a different rate from White British pupils, such as Black African children. The Timpson review, the analysis technical note, and the Government’s response can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-exclusions-review-call-for-evidence. [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/permanent-and-fixed-period-exclusions-in-england-2016-to-2017. National tables, table 8.

Ministry of Justice

Members: Correspondence

Karen Lee: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Courts and Justice plans to respond to the letter of 14 March 2019 from the hon. Member for Lincoln on economic domestic abuse.

Paul Maynard: I apologise to the honourable Member for Lincoln for the delay in responding to her letter dated 14 March. I understand that my response was sent to her office on 8 May.

Young Offender Institutions: Staff

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the (a) numbers and (b) performance of specialist staff trained in therapeutic and welfare-based approaches in UK young offenders institutions.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice is committed to improving the safety and life chances of young people in custody. We recognise that in recent years the youth secure estate has experienced difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. We are expanding frontline staff capacity in public-sector Young Offender Institutions: at the start of 2019, the Youth Custody Service had 315 more frontline officers than 12 months previously – an increase of 35 per cent. We are also providing funding for every Prison Officer in the Youth Custody Service to undertake a youth justice qualification and, on completion, move to a new youth justice specialist role on promotion and at a higher pay-grade. Over 400 frontline staff are currently enrolled on this qualification.We are working with the National Health Service to deliver an integrated framework of care, encompassing education, health and behavioural support, to ensure young people receive full needs assessments and tailored care and support plans. This is in addition to opening Enhanced Support Units for young people with the most complex needs, and increasing psychology staffing across the estate.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 18 April 2019 to Question 243526 on Prisons: Contracts, if the criteria for the qualitative evaluation of operational resources will include minimum staffing levels.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, whether contracts for new private prison operators will specify (a) minimum staffing levels and (b) trade union recognition.

Robert Buckland: Holding answer received on 13 May 2019



One of the key aims of the competition is to secure high quality, value for money bids. We expect providers to adequately resource their respective establishments to deliver a safe, decent and secure regime but also want to encourage innovation in service delivery. We believe setting a mandatory minimum threshold for staffing would not fully deliver the aims of the competition and could stifle the ability to innovate, both now and in the future.However, we will robustly evaluate bidder responses, for both quality and cost in consultation with subject matter experts across the organisation. It provides a full resourcing model based on the design of the prison, operating capacity, security category, the vision for the regime and the type of services that would best meet the needs of the cohort within.The PSC will enable us to rigorously evaluate the operational and financial aspects of the bids and provide assurance that bidders have the resources required to ensure a safe, decent, secure and rehabilitative regime that delivers quality, value for money and affordability.Recognition rights for trade unions are a matter for individual bidders and therefore are not mandated in the contract.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page three of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will place a copy of the Framework Agreement in the Library.

Robert Buckland: The final version of the Framework Agreement will be published following the award of the the Prison Operator Services Framework Competition. This will be published on the following link: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page five of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, whether staffing levels are included in Daily Reports.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page five of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, what categories of information are included in Daily Reports.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 11 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, what elements of Daily Reports are used to determine payment for private prison operators.

Paul Maynard: The Daily Report is a log provided by the contractor to the Ministry of Justice each day by 9am. It provides information about the previous day, including details of: the number of available prisoner places; the number of unavailable prison places; the number of prisoners accommodated at the prison; and the number of prisoners sharing a cell. Information on staffing levels is not provided in the Daily Report but is submitted through other management information requirements. The information provided in the Daily Report is used to calculate the Daily Payment, the monthly aggregate of which forms the main element of the monthly payment made to the contractor. The Daily Payment is based on the number of available prisoner places provided by the contractor and is calculated daily in order to capture changes in prisoner place availability.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page five of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will place a copy of the Competition Operator Requirements in the Library.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page five of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will list the Core Custodial Requirements that apply to all prisons.

Robert Buckland: The Competition Operator Requirements (COR) are based on the requirements contained in the existing custodial specifications – which are publicly available at the link below.https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/noms-directory-of-service-specificationsThe COR does not include requirements relating to high secure estate, women or the community as these are not applicable to any of the prisons that could be competed under the Prison Operator Services Framework Competition.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 10 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will place a copy of the Prison Operator Competition Mobilisation Strategy in the Library.

Robert Buckland: The Prison Operator Competition Mobilisation Strategy is due to be reviewed in readiness for the competition in respect of Wellingborough. Once this revised document is complete and published, a copy will be placed in the House of Commons library.

Wellingborough Prison: Kier Group

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 11 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, when the decision to appoint Kier as construction partner for HMP Wellingborough was made.

Robert Buckland: Kier were engaged by the Ministry of Justice using a two-stage contract. The first stage, which is primarily for the design of the prison, was executed on 14 February 2018. The second stage, which is primarily for the construction of the prison was executed on 15th April 2019

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 11 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, what steps are taken to hold private prison contractors to account.

Robert Buckland: Holding answer received on 13 May 2019



The private sector has an important role to play, and currently runs some high-performing prisons, as part of a safe, decent and secure prison estate.Privately managed prison performance is closely monitored by robust contract management processes. Each privately managed prison has an on-site controller, employed by HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS). Controllers, together with regional contract managers review performance against performance indicators set out in the contract. Any improvement action identified may include a requirement for urgent improvement and/or financial deductions.As well as contractual performance indicators, key statistics across public protection; safety and order; and offender reform are published annually for both the private and public estate.Privately-managed prisons are subject to the same external inspection procedures as those in the public sector. Prisons are inspected at least once every five years by HM Inspectorate of Prisons, and face regular scrutiny by their local Independent Monitoring Board. Additionally, HMPPS internal audit and assurance scrutinises private prisons to ensure they are meeting their responsibilities.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 15 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, whether Contract Delivery Indicators will include reference to levels of (a) violence, (b) overcrowding and (c) staff retention.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 15 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will list the anticipated Contract Delivery Indicators' (a) domains and (b) subdomains for HMP Wellingborough.

Robert Buckland: The Contract Delivery Indicators (CDIs) will be finalised prior to launching the mini-competition for the new resettlement prison at Wellingborough. The CDIs will be based on the domains in the Prison Performance Tool which is the framework used to monitor and report on performance in all prisons. In addition to CDIs, there will be management information requirements to ensure a full picture of prison performance is provided. The Prison Performance Tool data is regularly published on the gov.uk website. The data for 2018/19 is scheduled for publication on 25th July 2019 on gov.uk at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/prison-performance-ratings-2018-to-2019 Performance data for 2017/18 was published at the following link noting that data relates to the Custodial Performance Tool which was the predecessor performance framework to the Prison Performance Tool: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-performance-ratings-2017-to-2018

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 15 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, if he will place a copy of the Prison Performance Tool in the Library.

Robert Buckland: The Prison Performance Tool data is regularly published on the gov.uk website. The data for 2018/19 is scheduled for publication on 25th July 2019 on gov.uk at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/prison-performance-ratings-2018-to-2019 Performance data for 2017/18 was published at the following link noting that data relates to the Custodial Performance Tool which was the predecessor performance framework to the Prison Performance Tool:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-performance-ratings-2017-to-2018

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 16 of the House Commons Library Deposited Paper, DEP2019-0490, Prison Operator Competition Contract Summary, how his Department decides what information held by private prison operators will not be disclosable under the Freedom of Information Act.

Robert Buckland: All Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests will be addressed in accordance with guidance laid down by the Information Commissioners Office and within the relevant legislation. Any exemptions applied according to Section 43 (trade secrets and commercial interests) take into consideration what private prison operators indicate is commercially sensitive to them, however, the final decision is taken by the Authority in accordance with the public interest tests applicable under the FOIA.

Prisons: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many contractual improvement notices have been issued at each private prison in each of the last 10 years.

Robert Buckland: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Birmingham Prison: Staff

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the increase in full-time equivalent officers at HMP Birmingham has been after HM Prison and Probation Service (a) stepped in and (b) took over the prison permanently.

Robert Buckland: In August 2018, Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) exercised its right under the contract with G4S to ‘step-in’ and take over the running of HMP Birmingham. The ‘step-in’ meant that HMPPS could provide additional resources and support to directly address the areas of failure identified. The cost of this has been recovered from G4S. G4S remain contractually responsible for the prison until 1st of July 2019 when HMPPS will take full control of the prison. As we have always mentioned, HMPPS does not publish the staffing numbers for privately managed prisons. Operators of privately managed prisons are required to deliver sufficient recruitment and training of staff to ensure they maintain a safe, decent and secure prison as per their contractual obligation. The performance of all providers continues to be robustly managed and we will not hesitate to take action if standards fall short.

Ministry of Justice: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Paul Maynard: The number of cases1 of Ministry of Justice (MOJ) managers2 facing conduct and discipline action3 for 'Bullying and Harrassment'4 for each of the years 2013/14 to 2017/18, is as follows:  2013-142014-152015-162016-172017-185Number of cases44211 A case is defined as a unique combination of case and individual member of staff. Where more than one member of staff is involved in a single case these are counted separately in this table. Equally staff involved in more than one case during the year are counted multiple times.Managers defined as Civil Service Band B / SEO and above.Conduct and discipline cases are defined as where a penalty has been imposed on a member of staff for a reason of conduct.This includes 'Bullying and Harassment’ and ‘Abusive language/behaviour towards staff’ in data collected in HM Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS) and 'Offensive, abusive or repeated unwanted behaviour' in the remaining MOJ data.The 2017/18 data is provisional for HMPPS.Data includes MOJ and its Executive Agencies. MoJ has an ongoing commitment to ensuring that staff are treated with dignity and respect and that concerns raised by staff are listened to and dealt with appropriately. MoJ has a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of harassment and bullying. Our grievance policy and guidance is published on our intranet and accessible to all staff. We have a network of anti-bullying and harassment advisors that provide peer support to staff. In addition, we have an Employee Assistance Programme that offers advice, support and counselling services to those who have experienced harassment and bullying.

Prison Sentences: Females

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women the Metropolitan police force area received an immediate custodial sentence of (a) less than and (b) more than six months for each category of offence from the (i) crown courts and (ii) magistrates courts in 2018-19.

Edward Argar: The number of female offenders sentenced to custody by court level and police force area, including the metropolitan police force area, in 2017, can be found in the Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool, which can be found at the below link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017 Select the drop down boxes referring to custodial sentence length in order to establish sentence lengths. Select female from the sex drop box and, once having done this, young adults and adults to establish women. Offence classification can be found in both the Offence Type and Offence group boxes, depending on which categorisation is required here. Court proceedings data for 2018 are planned for publication on 16 May 2019, with data for 2019 planned for publication in May 2020. Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community. To achieve this, we have invested £5m to support community provision for female offenders and women at risk of offending. There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 found that over a 1-year follow up period, a higher proportion of people re-offended having been sentenced to custody of under 12 months without supervision on release than other similar people given community orders. Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.

Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of applications for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme have been decided within 12 months from initial submission in each year since 2010.

Edward Argar: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



The table below shows the proportion of applications received since 2010-11 which were decided (at first decision) within 12 months of submission. If an applicant is dissatisfied with their first decision, they have the right to request that this is reviewed. If they remain dissatisfied following review, they can appeal to the independent First-tier Tribunal (Criminal Injuries Compensation).  PeriodProportion of applications decided at 1st decision within 12 months of submission2010-1180%2011-1277%2012-1371%2013-1469%2014-1560%2015-1646%2016-1768%2017-1880%

Family Courts: Lone Parents

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that single mothers receive adequate support and advice in the family courts division.

Paul Maynard: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



Access to justice is a fundamental right. We spent £1.6bn last year on legal aid for the most vulnerable – of which £545m was in family law.Legal aid is also part of a bigger picture and so we are now making changes to enhance the breadth of legal support available for everyone in society.The Legal Support Action Plan, published on 7 February, announced that we would be changing the legal aid eligibility criteria to provide non-means tested legal aid for parents, or those with parental responsibility, who wish to oppose applications for placement orders or adoption orders in public family law. In addition, we announced that we will doubling the department’s funding to the Litigants in Person Support Strategy to £3m for the next two years.

Working Links

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish a list of the creditors who will benefit from the Working Links Ministerial direction made on 8 May 2019.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of the creditors who will benefit from the Working Links Ministerial direction made on 8 May 2019 are voluntary organisations.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish a list of the value of the losses incurred in the collapse of Working Links by creditors who will benefit from the Working Links Ministerial direction made on 8 May 2019.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the cost of payments to be made following the Working Links Ministerial direction made on 8 May 2019.

Robert Buckland: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



As set out in the Secretary of State’s Direction of 8 May, it has been concluded, on this occasion, that it is reasonable for Government to protect Permitted Subcontractors who suffered losses as they relate to the collapse of Working Links and their Community Rehabilitation Companies. These organisations are directly involved in the delivery of vital frontline probation services. Further to the Direction, we are now working through a process with the Permitted Subcontractors to understand the extent to which they had monies owed to them by the Working Links’ CRCs at the point of Administration for the delivery of frontline probation services, that can be satisfactorily evidenced and validated. Until this process is completed, it is not possible to accurately answer the Rt Hon Member’s questions. We have been very clear that this is a unique response to a unique and specific set of circumstances. This should not be viewed as setting a precedent for future scenarios.

Department for International Trade

Department for International Trade: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

George Hollingbery: The Department for International Trade (DIT) was formed in July 2016. As such, we do not hold any data from before this time. Bullying and harassment is taken very seriously in DIT and is a central part of DIT’s Fair Treatment at Work Policy, which is available to all staff through our internal intranet. As part of this and alongside our HR function, DIT has in place first responders who are trained to support and signpost individuals on issues relating to bullying and harassment. YearNumber of cases centrally reported by the department2016 (From July) 201772018 2019 (To date)  Where there are fewer than 5 cases recorded, we are not able to provide exact figures as this may lead to individuals being identified. We are not able to provide specific figures for the incidents recorded against managers only as we do not collect this data centrally. This data covers staff in the UK, and UK based staff working overseas.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing: Older People

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of demand for specialist housing for older people.

Kit Malthouse: Providing more homes for older people is vital to support an ageing population. Offering older people a better choice of accommodation can help them to live independently for longer and help reduce costs to social care and the health system. Our proposals, set out in the White Paper ‘Fixing our broken housing market’, underline our commitment to do more to provide the homes we need for all in our society, including for older and disabled people. In the White Paper we also recognised and committed to explore the barriers for older people moving at the right time to the right property, to build on evidence to deliver outcomes that are best for older people, including finding sustainable solutions and explore ways to stimulate the market to deliver new homes for older people.We also published, in July 2018, the new version of the National Planning Policy Framework, which expressly requires local plans to include a detailed needs assessment for housing our older and disabled populations. We will shortly be publishing further guidance to help councils put these policies in place.

Housing: Older People

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of trends in the level of under-occupation of larger houses on the supply of specialist housing for older people.

Kit Malthouse: The Government’s Housing White Paper underlines our commitment to do more to provide the homes we need for all in our society, including for older and disabled people. We also recognised and committed to explore the barriers for older people moving at the right time to the right property and explore ways to stimulate the market to deliver new homes for older people.This will involve building on evidence to deliver outcomes that are best for older people, including finding sustainable solutions, drawing on the expertise of a wide range of stakeholders, and by considering the impact on the housing market caused by older people moving home - and how this could contribute to a stronger evidence base to inform our policy making. These approaches will sit alongside our commitments to continue to fund the development of supported and sheltered housing.

Sheltered Housing

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's Housing Delivery Test: 2018 measurement, what the requirements are for the provision of specialist housing-with-care.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with representatives of providers of specialist housing-with-care for older people on the requirements of the Housing Delivery Test.

Kit Malthouse: The Housing Delivery Test is a percentage measurement of net homes delivered against the number of homes required. The test cannot be disaggregated into different types of housing, but incentivises authorities to deliver housing for older people by allowing them to count communal accommodation (such as care homes).In preparing the Housing White Paper ‘Fixing the Broken Housing Market’, and the revised National Planning Policy Framework published last year, we consulted a wide range of groups, including Age UK and the Retirement Housing Group. For the draft Framework we conducted 3 key stakeholder roundtables, and carried out 40 individual meetings with interested parties on specific topics or wording.

Grenfell Recovery Taskforce

Emma Dent Coad: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what his timetable is for publishing the fourth report from the Independent Grenfell Recovery Taskforce.

Kit Malthouse: The Independent Grenfell Recovery Taskforce are due to submit their fourth report on the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council’s progress to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government this Spring. It will be published in due course.

Community Relations: Sudan

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how Sudanese people in the UK are being supported through the Government's integration and engagement strategies.

Rishi Sunak: In March 2018, the Government published the Integrated Communities Strategy Green Paper which set out our ambitious goal to build strong integrated communities where people - whatever their background - live, work, learn and socialise together, based on shared rights, responsibilities and opportunities.   On 9 February 2019, we published the Integrated Communities Action Plan alongside the government’s response to the consultation on the Green Paper. The Action Plan builds upon the proposals set out in the Green Paper and commits the government to deliver over 70 policy actions by the end of this Parliament to create socially and economically stronger, more confident and integrated communities.   These actions are targeted to support people in the most segregated communities regardless of their faith or ethnic background so they can progress and make the most of the opportunities of living in modern Britain.

Housing: Construction

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many of the 65,000 homes set to be built on public land by 2020 under the public land for housing programme will be for social rent.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, by what date he plans to report on how many affordable homes (a) have been built and (b) are planned to be built as part of the Public Land for Housing programme.

James Brokenshire: Data on affordable homes, including those for social rent, is being collected by Ordnance Survey for both Public Sector Land Programmes. We will include this in the next progress report. The data will set out the number of planned affordable homes on former public sector land sites, which are agreed between the developer and the local authority according to local needs.

Housing: Construction

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the National Audit's Office press release of 2 May 2019, Investigation into the government’s land disposal strategy and programmes, and its finding that until April 2019 the MHCLG had not published an annual report on the land for new homes programme since February 2017 despite committing to do so, what steps he plans to take to report to (a) Parliament and (b) the public on the progress of the Public Land for Housing programme.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to improve the transparency of the Public Land for Housing programme.

James Brokenshire: On 2 May, a Progress Report into the Public Land for Housing Programme was published as an update on progress of the 2015–20 Programme, showing progress up to December 2018. The report included information on the progress of the development of sites after they were sold.The report has been laid in the House of Commons Library and is publicly available via https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/public-land-for-housing-programme-2015-to-2020-progress-report.

Housing: Construction

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Public Land for Housing programme, what meetings he has had on that programme involving (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants of his Department and (i) Ministers and (ii) civil servants of (A) the Cabinet Office, (B) the Ministry of Defence, (C) the Department for Transport, (D) the Department of Health and (E) the Ministry of Justice since 2015.

James Brokenshire: Since the programme launched in May 2015 there have been at least four rounds of bilateral meetings with Ministers from MoD, DfT, DHSC, MoJ and DfE, some of which involved the Minister for Implementation and Cabinet Office officials. The Housing Minister also convened a Public Sector Land round-table involving all major land owning departments to discuss programme performance in 2018.I and my predecessors have presented progress on the Public Land for Housing Programme to ministerial colleagues at six meetings of the Housing Implementation Task Force attended by the major land owning departments.I receive regular updates on the Programme from my officials and in the last 12 months the Housing Minister has met with his officials at least eight times to discuss the Programmes Performance.

Community Infrastructure Levy

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the level of paperwork required for the Community Infrastructure Levy.

Kit Malthouse: The Government published a consultation paper in December 2018 setting out proposals to make the system of developer contributions more efficient, transparent and accountable. The proposals will reduce the level of paperwork. For example, when a home owner obtains an exemption for a residential extension they will not be required to submit a commencement notice to the local authority before the building work commences. The forms ensure that the developer provides the necessary information to enable the local authority to make a fair and transparent assessment of the levy liabilities. They provide certainty for all parties, reduce the need to seek further information and provide a clear audit trail.

Affordable Housing: Rural Areas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to reassess the threshold for affordable housing on rural exception sites.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



Rural exception sites are used for affordable housing provided in perpetuity, on land that would not normally be released for development. While some market housing may be allowed on such sites, this is at the local planning authority’s discretion, and no threshold applies. On sites that are not exception sites, national policy is that affordable housing should be sought only on sites that involve major development, except in designated rural areas where a lower threshold may be set.

Housing: Floods

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the number of new homes built on flood plains in each of the last eight years.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



Estimates of the numbers of homes built on flood plains can be obtained by comparing the percentage of new residential addresses created that were in National Flood Zone 3 with the new build completion statistics. These figures are available for 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 from:  https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/573278/1516_Land_Use_Change_Statistics_Live_Tables.xlsx (Table P320); and  https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/568411/LiveTable_120.xls (Table 120) Figures for previous years exist only for 2011 and earlier years and are not on the same basis as those in Table P320. The percentage of new residential addresses created in 2017-18 that were in National Flood Zone 3 is due to be published in an updated version of Table P320 on 31 May All local planning authorities are expected to follow the strict tests set out in national planning policy and guidance, which includes steering development away from high risk flood areas. Where development in flood risk areas is considered, national planning policy is clear that it should be safe, resilient and not increase flood risk anywhere. We have been clear that new housing is not appropriate and should not be allowed in a functional floodplain, where water has to flow or be stored in times of flood.

Buildings: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18 April 2019 to Question 245803 on Buildings: Insulation, whether the testing of non-aluminium composite materials has started.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



Yes, the test programme started on 30 April 2019.

Buildings: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to publish the results of the testing of non-aluminium composite materials.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



I refer the Hon Member to the written statement made by the Secretary of State on 1 May 2019 (HCWS 1533 Building Safety Update).

Buildings: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what date was originally specified in the contract with the Buildings Research Establishment for the completion of testing of non-aluminium composite materials.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 14 May 2019



The contract did not specify a date for the test programme to be completed but the contract period was originally agreed to end November 2018, with the option to extend for nine months. The Department has exercised that option.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the the number of dwellings in the 108 social sector residential blocks with ACM cladding that are still awaiting remediation; and in which regions those residential blocks are located.

Kit Malthouse: The latest information on number of dwellings in social sector high-rise residential buildings with Aluminium Composite Material cladding systems unlikely to meet Building Regulations that are yet to be remediated were published in the April Building Safety Programme Data Release on 9 May 2019.Our ongoing quality checks have identified an error in the figure published in the April Data Release. This has now been corrected in the published Data Release in line with our published Revisions Policy.The updated figure from 30 April 2019 is that approximately 8,400 dwellings in 108 social sector high-rise residential buildings with Aluminium Composite Material cladding systems unlikely to meet Building Regulations are yet to be remediated.The regional breakdown is in the table below:RegionNumber of dwellingsLondon4,600North West2,500South East400South West300North East200East of England200Yorkshire and The Humber100Total8,400The figures in this table have been rounded to the nearest 100 independently which explains why the sum of the rows does not equal the total.

Ministry of Defence

EU Defence Policy

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) existing and (b) proposed commitments the Government has made to the European defence union; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: NATO remains the cornerstone of our defence. The UK has welcomed closer cooperation on security and defence at EU level, to the extent that it is coherent with NATO. The Political Declaration agreed in November 2018 provides the basis for a flexible and scalable future security partnership. The UK, along with other EU Member States, has been clear that we retain full sovereign control over defence policy and decision making.

Ministry of Defence: Property

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if she will publish a list of (a) land and (b) buildings that her Department is in the process of selling and/or disposing of; how many of those buildings are empty; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: A copy of a list showing land and buildings that are in the process of being disposed of has been placed in the Library of the House.Some 47 sites on the report are empty, each site may contain multiple buildings.



List of MOD land and buildings being disposed
(Excel SpreadSheet, 34.97 KB)

Type 31 Frigates: Exports

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the export strategy for the Type 31 frigate following increases to the construction costs of that frigate.

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is remains her Department’s policy (a) that the price for a Type 31e frigate is capped at £250 million and (b) to order five Type 31e frigates.

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate she has made of the cost of procuring a Type 31e frigate.

Stuart Andrew: We still want all five Type 31e Frigates at an average production price of £250 million per ship. We are confident that it will be competitively priced in the global export market.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much has been deducted from universal credit claimants' standard allowance in each month since April 2017.

Alok Sharma: Holding answer received on 26 February 2019



Internal figures are provided in the table below from two DWP datasets. The Government recognises the importance of safeguarding the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt. The aim of the deductions policy in Universal Credit is to protect vulnerable claimants from eviction and/or having their gas, electricity and water cut off, by providing a last resort repayment method for arrears of these essential services. The increase in Universal Credit caseload and activity to increase awareness of advances has had an effect on deductions. Increased awareness has resulted in around 60% of eligible new claims to Universal Credit receiving an advance in October 2018, providing further financial support until their first payment. Total amount deducted from Universal Credit payments between April 2017 and October 2018MonthAmount deducted [rounded to the nearest million]Amount of Universal Credit paid [rounded to the nearest million]Amount deducted as a percentage of Universal Credit paidApr-17£9,000,000£140,000,0007%May-17£10,000,000£148,000,0007%Jun-17£10,000,000£159,000,0006%Jul-17£11,000,000£166,000,0006%Aug-17£11,000,000£176,000,0006%Sep-17£12,000,000£186,000,0006%Oct-17£13,000,000£195,000,0007%Nov-17£13,000,000£205,000,0007%Dec-17£15,000,000£216,000,0007%Jan-18£17,000,000£232,000,0007%Feb-18£19,000,000£243,000,0008%Mar-18£22,000,000£257,000,0008%Apr-18£23,000,000£266,000,0009%May-18£25,000,000£284,000,0009%Jun-18£27,000,000£319,000,0008%Jul-18£29,000,000£335,000,0009%Aug-18£32,000,000£360,000,0009%Sep-18£35,000,000£380,000,0009%Oct-18£39,000,000£410,000,00010% Notes: Data sources: Universal Credit Live Service Reference Datasets and Full Service PDM data, UC Analysis Division 1. Figures are provided for the total of UC Live Service and Full Service. The data is sourced from two different computer systems and the information available is slightly different on each system.Full Service deductions include advance repayments and all other deductions, but exclude sanctions and fraud penalties which are deductions of benefit rather than deductions.Live Service deductions do not include sanctions which are reductions of benefit rather than deductions, but may include Fraud Penalties as these could not be removed from the Live Service data.The Full and Live Service datasets use slightly different definitions for the month. Full Service data uses the month the UC payment is due, whereas Live Service data uses the month the assessment period related to the payment ends. The 'Total' column sums the figures using these different definitions. 2. Increase in the total deduction amounts by month reflects the effect of Universal Credit (UC) roll out as more people move onto UC. 3. Amount of Universal Credit paid reflects the amount of money paid to claimants and their landlords as part of their award. It does not include other payments such as advances and hardship payments. 4. Figures are provisional and are subject to retrospective change as later data becomes available.

Universal Credit: Housing

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make automatic payment of the housing cost element of universal credit directly to the landlord.

Will Quince: Universal Credit payments are designed to mirror the world of work, with monthly payments reflecting the way many working people are paid. This model of monthly payments allows claimants to take responsibility for budgeting their own income and helps prepare them for getting back to work. Many claimants are capable of managing their own financial affairs and for these claimants a Managed Payment to Landlords (MPTL) is not appropriate. A claimant’s personal circumstances could change in a way which means that they need additional support at any stage of a claim, not just at the start. As such, we make sure that managed payments to landlords (MPTL) are available to Universal Credit claimants when appropriate, either from the start of their claim or at whatever point in which they need help. A MPTL can be requested by the claimant, their representative or their landlord and will be considered on a case by case basis and requests for MPTLs are dealt with as a priority. Landlords who are given access to the Landlord Portal are also given Trusted Partner status which allows them to make recommendations on whether an MPTL should be put in place. All MPTL recommendations from Trusted Partners will be implemented in good faith by DWP.

Universal Credit

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of claims for advance payments since the inception of universal credit.

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of advance payments for universal credit since its inception.

Alok Sharma: Universal Credit (UC) new claim advances provide access to a payment for those in financial need, which can be accessed on the same day, until their first UC payment is due. Claimants can access up to 100% of the total expected monthly award, for which they can pay back over a period of up to 12 months. From October 2021, this maximum repayment period will be extended further to 16 months. Around 60 per cent of new claims take up an advance. Subject to some fluctuation, this rate of advance take-up has been broadly consistent over the last 12 months. Between 1 May 2013 and 30 April 2019, a total of 2.9 million UC advance payments have been made. Advances are payments of Universal Credit made early, which are subject to recovery over an agreed period.

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what regular appraisals her Department undertakes of the performance of Capita in assessing claimants of personal independence payment.

Justin Tomlinson: All elements of Capita’s performance are monitored including the requirements for the quality of assessments, which are assessed through audit. The PIP audit process assesses the quality of a sample of assessment reports on a monthly basis against the standards set out in the PIP Assessment Guide, with feedback provided to the provider. Alongside contracted measures we continue to work extensively with Capita to ensure the quality of service is continuously improved, including improvements to guidance, training and the claimant journey. The Department has set Capita challenging targets for the ‘Lot 2’ contract covering Wales and the Midlands. The department robustly performance manages Capita against those requirements on a regular basis.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Ged Killen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2019 to Question 217138, what designation has been assigned to those complaints.

Ged Killen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2019 to Question 217138, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of her Department instructing the Independent Case Examiner to reopen complaints relating to the equalisation of the state pension age cases in the event that legal proceedings fall away.

Guy Opperman: I refer the honourable gentlemen to the answer previously given in response to Question 217138. The Independent Case Examiner closed all live complaints concerning changes to women’s State Pension age when they became subject to legal proceedings, as is required under its governance contract. In the event the legal proceedings fall away or there is no determination on the matters which form the basis of this group of complaints, the Independent Case Examiner could consider reopening the cases at the request of the Department. The Department cannot evaluate the potential merits of making such a request until the legal proceedings have been concluded.

Universal Credit: Hearing Impairment

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the information for British Sign Language users  to contact the universal credit helpline through a video relay service.

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate her Department has made of the number of British Sign Language users who have not received adequate support in accessing the universal credit helpline.

Alok Sharma: Universal Credit has been designed with accessibility in mind and we are committed to providing personalised support for all claimants. Where our customers need assistance to access our services and information, we make reasonable adjustments to meet their individual needs. DWP customers who have a specific communication barrier are able to use a variety of different communication methods including via third party interpreters for British Sign Language (BSL) and textphone and next Generation Text services are available to customers who are unable to contact the Department by phone. In addition, Universal Credit claimants can use their online accounts to send messages direct to their Work Coach or Case Manager, check their Universal Credit benefit payments and notify us of any changes. We are currently in the design stage of a test to implement Video Relay Service for our Universal Credit British Sign Language customers in one geography by June 2019. This will be robustly evaluated incorporating customer insight ahead of any decision to roll out the service nationally.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Birds: Pest Control

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, for what reasons general licences for controlling certain species of bird were revoked before the Government was legally required to do so.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the Rt Hon. Gentleman to the letter sent from the Chairman of Natural England to the Secretary of State www.gov.uk/government/publications/general-licences-for-controlling-wild-birds-letter-from-natural-england-chair-to-environment-secretary

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We do not record cases of bullying and harassment made specifically against managers. The table below shows the total number of cases per year. We have withheld the exact figure for years that involve less than five members of staff, to mitigate the risk of them being identified from the information provided.  YearNumber of cases of bullying and harassment201402015Less than 5201652017Less than 520187 The overall number of staff working in Defra has risen substantially since 2017. Defra is committed to creating an environment where no one suffers from harassment, discrimination, bullying and victimisation, either directly or indirectly. We support the right of employees to be treated with dignity and respect at work, and our HR policies and procedures make it clear that the department will not accept inappropriate behaviours.

Air Pollution

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance his Department provided to (a) schools, (b) nurseries, (c) hospitals, (d) care homes and (e) GP surgeries on protecting vulnerable people from the pollution episodes that occurred across England in April 2019.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: During episodes of elevated air pollution (including the episodes across England in April 2019) Defra works closely with Public Health England and a network of health charities to ensure that key health messages are communicated to those who are vulnerable to the effects of air pollution, in addition to communicating through our normal digital channels. Defra’s Daily Air Quality Index (https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/air-pollution/daqi) assists in understanding air pollution levels, suggests recommended actions and gives health advice. Such advice applies to anyone experiencing symptoms.

Low Emission Zones

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make available funds from the Air Quality Grant Program to support local investment in ultra-low emission zones in suburbs of major cities; and will he make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Air Quality Grant is a competitive grant and eligible local authorities can apply for support on innovative projects to reduce air pollution. Projects are evaluated based on air quality priorities. We have provided almost £500 million to local authorities to enable action to tackle harmful roadside emissions including through clean air zones, and more than £3 million will be awarded to local authorities this year via the Air Quality Grant Fund.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has plans to compensate circus owners who will no longer be able to use wild animals in their circuses under the Wild Animals in Circuses (No 2) Bill.

David Rutley: We have no plans to compensate circus owners who will no longer be able to use wild animals in travelling circuses.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of an inspector appointed under the Wild Animals in Circuses (No 2) Bill; and from which budget that cost will be met.

David Rutley: Currently only two circuses still use wild animal acts in Great Britain. Given any breach of the ban proposed in the Wild Animals in Circuses (No.2) Bill would involve a circus performing or exhibiting a wild animal in public, we do not believe many, if any, circuses will seek to contravene the ban. Therefore our estimate is that any cost to Defra of enforcing the ban will be negligible.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential fate of the animals that may no longer be used in circuses under the Wild Animals in Circuses (No 2) Bill.

David Rutley: The Welfare of Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses (England) Regulations 2012 require circuses using wild animals to have retirement plans in place, and these should ensure that high welfare standards should continue to apply to these animals when they are no longer used in travelling circuses.

Home Office

Proscribed Organisations: British Nationals Abroad

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of amending Section 63A of the Terrorism Act 2000 to extend extrajudicial jurisdiction to the offence of a UK national supporting a proscribed organisation while overseas.

Mr Ben Wallace: The offence of membership of a proscribed organisation has had extra-territorial jurisdiction since 2006. The Counter Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 extended extra-territorial jurisdiction-limited to UK nationals and residents-to the offences of inviting support, reckless expressions of support, and displaying in a public place and publishing an image of a flag or logo.

Migrant Workers: Domestic Service

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 June 2015 to Question HL314 on Migrant Workers: Domestic Service, how many trafficking cases have been confirmed since 2015; and how many of those trafficking cases were linked to people who had previously been issued an overseas domestic worker visa.

Victoria Atkins: Data on the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is published regularly by the National Crime Agency, available via the following link:https://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/component/finder/search?q=national+referral+mechanism&Itemid=101&Itemid=101This includes data on how many conclusive grounds decisions are made year-on-year, confirming individuals as victims of modern slavery.The Home Office does not publish information on the number of confirmed victims of modern slavery who have previously been issued an overseas domestic worker visa.The Home Office is committed to improving data around victim identification and will continue to review the data it publishes in relation to NRM referrals and victim typology.

Knives: Crime

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help tackle knife crime using public health methods.

Victoria Atkins: Tackling serious violence, including knife crime, is a top priority for the Government. As set out in our Serious Violence Strategy, we are taking a multi-agency approach that brings together different sectors and stresses the importance of early intervention to tackle the root causes of violence.To reinforce this approach, on 1 April, we launched a consultation on a new legal duty to underpin a public health approach to tackling serious violence. The consultation, which will close on 28 May can be found on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/serious-violence-new-legal-duty-to-support-multi-agency-action].Between 1 and 4 April 2019, the Prime Minister hosted a Serious Youth Violence Summit at 10 Downing Street, with the support of the Home Secretary and other Secretaries of State to ensure a shared understanding and commitment to the multi-agency, public health approach to tackling knife crime and serious violence. A new Ministerial Taskforce, chaired by the Prime Minister, has been created to drive cross-government action. A report summarising the key discussion points can be found on the gov.uk website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prime-ministers-summit-on-serious-youth-violence.In addition, on 13 March the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced an additional £100 million funding for this year to tackle serious violence, which includes funding to support investment in Violence Reduction Units to support cross-sector work. The Violence Reduction Units will bring together a range of public agencies, such as the police, education, health partners, offender management, local authorities and others to tackle serious youth violence.

Migrant Workers: NHS and Social Services

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure effective recruitment from (a) EU and (b) non-EU countries to meet demand for NHS and social care workers after the UK leaves the EU.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the salary exemption for nurses under Tier 2 visas will (a) be maintained and (b) extended to EEA citizens after the UK leaves the EU.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, steps he is taking to ensure that adequate numbers of non-UK care workers are able to work in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.

Caroline Nokes: We have been clear that we want all EU nationals, including those working in the NHS and the care sector, to stay in the UK after we leave the EU.In December 2018, the Government set out its proposals in “The UK’s future Skills-based Immigration System” White Paper. The White Paper proposals include a new route for skilled workers which will be open to anyone at RQF level 3 and above, irrespective of where they are applying from. This route will not be capped allowing all of those who meet our requirements to come to the UK and we intend to abolish the existing Resident Labour Market Test for highly skilled roles.The White Paper also includes, as a transitional measure, a temporary workers route which will be open to anyone from qualifying countries, wishing to fill positions at any skill level, for up to 12 months. We do not intend to impose a cap on the number of people wishing to use the route.In their report on the impact of EEA migration in the UK, the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) recommended maintaining the existing system of salary thresholds.The Government is undertaking an extensive programme of engagement with a wide range of stakeholders across the UK, over the course of this year, including with the private, public and voluntary sector and local government, as well as industry representatives and individual businesses before taking a final decision on the level of salary thresholds.

Visas: Ministers of Religion

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for Tier 5 temporary religious worker visas were (a) made and (b) granted in the last five years.

Caroline Nokes: Information on ‘Tier 5 – Religious Workers’ entry clearance visa applications and outcomes (granted, refused, withdrawn, lapsed) is published on a quarterly basis in the Home Office’s ‘Immigration Statistics’, Visas data tables volume 1, table vi_01_q, latest edition at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-december-2018/list-of-tables#visas.

Dangerous Dogs: Livestock

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he plans to instruct police forces in England and Wales to record dog attacks on livestock.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government recognises that dog attacks on livestock can cause considerable stress to livestock owners, as well as causing serious injury to the animals.A range of powers are available to the police to tackle this issue, including offences provided for by the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 and Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and civil orders introduced by the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 which can be used to address nuisance behaviour involving dogs.The police should record and investigate all crimes reported to them.

Jamal Khashoggi

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what lessons his Department has learned from the killing of Jamal Khashoggi on potential risks to (a) UK citizens and (b) persons residing in the UK who are critics of the Saudi Arabian Government.

Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to recent reports of threats to the life of İyad el-Baghdadi, if he will make an assessment of threats posed to (a) UK citizens and (b) persons residing in the UK by agents of the Saudi Government.

Mr Ben Wallace: It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on the security arrangements for individuals or certain groups. To do so could compromise the integrity of those arrangements and affect the security of the individuals concerned.

Nuisance: Enforcement

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May 2019 to  Question 247670, if he will provide guidance to the Metropolitan Police Service on the enforcement of the offence of public nuisance.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not plan to issue guidance to the police on the enforcement of the offence of public nuisance. Decisions on the use of police powers are operational matters for the police.

Home Office: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Victoria Atkins: The total number of recorded grievances alleging bullying, harassment or dis-crimination (BHD) raised by Home Office employees in each of the last five years is as follows:YearNumber of Grievances2014-151012015-161482016-171412017-181172018-19121Total628These are total figures which do not differentiate between BHD allegations brought against managers acting a management capacity and those brought against other employees. Establishing the figures relating specifically to managers could only be done at disproportionate cost. Not all grievances will be upheld following investigation.The Home Office makes it clear to employees that bullying, harassment and discrimination are unacceptable behaviours that will not be tolerated. A range of support is available to any employee who has been affected by BHD.

Immigrants: Employment

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recourse is available to people who have a right to work in the UK when they have lost their job as a result of an employer failing to use the Employer Checking Service; and what guidance his Department has issued to employers on their responsibilities in relation to that service.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office issued guidance to employers on 28 January 2019 on how they can use the on-line digital service in complying with their responsibilities under the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 on the prevention of illegal working. The online service provides an alternative digital means for individuals to evidence their right to work if they hold a biometric residence permit or biometric residence card or status under the EU Settlement Scheme. The Home Office guidance clearly stipulates that employers should provide individuals with every opportunity to demonstrate their right to work. They should not discriminate on the basis of whether or not an individual is able or willing to demonstrate their right to work using the online checking service, as opposed to using physical documents specified in Home Office regulations which continue to be acceptable. The guidance makes clear that employers who do so risk breaching the Equality Act 2010. Where employees have an outstanding immigration application or appeal, the Home Office provides a separate employer checking service which provides emailed confirmation to the employer of the person’s continuing right to work in these circumstances. The Home Office has issued a statutory code of practice for employers on how to avoid unlawful discrimination whilst conducting right to work checks.

Religious Buildings: Security

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effect of his Department's funding of the protection of places of worship.

Victoria Atkins: The Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme has been in place since 2016. Over the first three years, in total the scheme has approved grants worth approximately £1.5 million with 63 to churches, 49 to mosques, 5 to Hindu temples and 17 to Gurdwaras.We continuously listen to feedback to make the scheme as effective as possible, and places of worship which successfully bid for funding have described feeling an increased sense of safety. As part of our ongoing assessment of the success of the scheme, we monitor the scheme’s application rates and other related management information, seek regular feedback from faith communities and security experts, and undertake site visits at places of worship which have received funding. We have also heard that some places of worship found it cumbersome to gather multiple quotes for all measures, which is why we have removed the requirement under the 2019-20 scheme.More widely, the Home Secretary has committed to consulting with faith communities to understand what more could and should be done to help protect faith communities at their places of worship. This upcoming consultation will also be an opportunity to assess the impact of the Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme further and to identify any potential improvements, which will make the scheme even more effective.

Deportation: Homicide

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate  his Department has made of the number of people killed within a year of deportation from the UK.

Caroline Nokes: We do not routinely monitor foreign national offenders once they have been removed to their country of origin.All decisions to deport are taken on a case-by-case basis and protection issues will be considered as part of that decision, taking account of the conditions in the country of return.

Wales Office

Business: Wales

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent steps he has taken to engage with businesses throughout Wales on preparedness for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Alun Cairns: I engage frequently with stakeholders from across Wales, including business on a range of issues including EU exit and preparedness. Most recently on 14 March and 11 April I held teleconference calls with my Expert Panel and Economic Advisory Board to discuss EU Exit. Representatives from the business community were on those calls including the CBI Wales, the South and Mid-Wales Chamber of Commerce and the West Cheshire and North Wales Chamber of Commerce.

Origin Marking: Wales

Martyn Day: What recent assessment the Government has made of the economic effect on producers of protected geographical indications for Welsh products.

Alun Cairns: I recognise the economic and cultural importance of geographical indications to all parts of the United Kingdom. There are 16 current Welsh products covered by the scheme, ranging from Halen Môn sea salt to Welsh lamb.

Tourism and Foreign Investment in UK

Michael Fabricant: What recent steps the Government has taken to promote (a) inward tourism and (b) foreign direct investment in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Foster: Last year, over 3000 jobs came to Wales through Foreign Direct Investment, through 57 projects of which 93% were supported by both my department and the Department for International Trade.Between 2015 and 2018, the UK attracted more foreign direct investment in capital investment than France and Germany combined.

Origin Marking: Wales

Carol Monaghan: What recent assessment the Government has made of the economic effect on producers of protected geographical indications for Welsh products.

Alun Cairns: I recognise the economic and cultural importance of geographical indications to all parts of the United Kingdom. There are 16 current Welsh products covered by the scheme, ranging from Halen Môn sea salt to Welsh lamb.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Abortion

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will publish his Department's detailed country policy analyses pertaining to the Effectiveness Evaluation of the Prevention of Maternal Deaths from Unwanted Pregnancy Programme.

Harriett Baldwin: The Department for International Development (DFID) published the Evaluation of the Prevention of Maternal Deaths from Unwanted Pregnancy Programme (found here: https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/projects/GB-1-201518/documents) together with the management response. These include a number of country-specific recommendations which have been disseminated. No other country analysis was undertaken by DFID, in relation to the Programme.

Developing Countries: Abortion

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that there is (a) robust decision making in respect of reducing illegal abortions overseas and (b) no conflict of interest between Planned Parenthood which receives funding from his Department to reduce those abortions and the Guttmacher Institute which was founded by Planned Parenthood and is his Department's sole provider of figures on such abortions.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK Government’s policy on safe abortion (found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safe-and-unsafe-abortion-uks-policy-position-on-safe-and-unsafe-abortion-in-developing-countries) takes an evidence-based, public health approach that aims to reduce death and disability caused by unsafe abortions. The UK is clear that the best way to avoid abortion is through giving women information and contraception, so they can decide whether, when and how many children to have. Therefore, the primary aim and vast majority of our investment in reproductive health is to increase uptake of voluntary family planning, which helps reduce demand for abortion. The UK funds the International Planned Parenthood Federation to work in developing countries, rather than the Planned Parenthood Federation of America which founded, but is now separate from, the Guttmacher Institute. There is no conflict of interest arising from UK Government support.

Azerbaijan: Overseas Aid

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much Official Development Assistance his Department was allocated to Azerbaijan in 2019.

Harriett Baldwin: The Department for International Development does not operate a country programme in Azerbaijan and therefore has not allocated any resources to that country. The most recent figures for all UK ODA spend are available in Statistics for International Development (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-on-international-development-final-uk-aid-spend-2017).

Department for Exiting the European Union

European Union: Treaties

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many of the protocols or joint interpretive instruments annexed to EU treaties to which the UK is party have been the subject of specific parliamentary approval and have legally binding status equivalent to the relevant treaty.

James Cleverly: The Protocols and Annexes to the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) (as amended) “form an integral part thereof” as set out in Article 51 of the TEU i.e. they have the same legal status as the Treaties.Joint or unilateral interpretative statements annexed to treaties are relevant to the interpretation of those treaties in accordance with article 31 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties and have binding legal force where they are accepted by the parties.When Parliament approved the UK’s accession to the EU it approved accession to all existing EU Treaties as described in part 1 of Schedule 1 to the European Communities Act 1972. Thereafter, Parliament also approved all subsequent Treaties (including protocols or annexes thereto) amending the TEU or the TFEU as described in the definition of “the Treaties” or “the EU Treaties” set out in section 1(2) of the European Communities Act 1972.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Kwasi Kwarteng: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 14 May 2019.The correct answer should have been:

The Department for Exiting the European Union is committed to being an inclusive workplace where people can bring their whole selves to work. We care about the wellbeing of our staff and have committed to taking a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment.We fully investigate all claims of bullying and harassment and take action in line with Departmental policies as appropriate. We have also introduced fair treatment ambassadors to provide another avenue for staff to receive support and signposting, as well as initiatives to help individuals, especially managers, recognise and resolve instances of bullying and harassment.As the Department was created within the last 5 years, we only have records from 2017: 2015: 02016: 02017: less than 52018: less than 52019: 0

Kwasi Kwarteng: The Department for Exiting the European Union is committed to being an inclusive workplace where people can bring their whole selves to work. We care about the wellbeing of our staff and have committed to taking a zero tolerance approach to bullying and harassment.We fully investigate all claims of bullying and harassment and take action in line with Departmental policies as appropriate. We have also introduced fair treatment ambassadors to provide another avenue for staff to receive support and signposting, as well as initiatives to help individuals, especially managers, recognise and resolve instances of bullying and harassment.As the Department was created within the last 5 years, we only have records from 2017: 2015: 02016: 02017: less than 52018: less than 52019: 0

Treasury

Help to Buy Scheme: Scotland

John Lamont: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have benefited from the Help to Buy ISA and how much this is in monetary terms in (a) Scotland and (b) Berwickshire, Roxburgh & Selkirk.

John Glen: Since the Help to Buy: ISA’s launch in 1 December 2015 till 31 December 2018, the Government has paid out 23,960 bonuses to individuals purchasing a home in Scotland, with a total value of £20,326,852. In Berwickshire, Roxburgh & Selkirk, 261 bonuses have been paid, with a total value of £198,112.

Automatic Number Plate Recognition

Lee Rowley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the merits of including an interface to automatic number plate recognition systems for the new computerised transit system.

Mel Stride: We are exploring innovative solutions to make the transit process more efficient in the future. This will include consideration of introducing an interface between the new computerised transit system and automatic number plate recognition systems. However, a decision has yet to be made on the final solution.

Public Expenditure

Priti Patel: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the key dates by which government departments need to submit future funding requirements as part of the Comprehensive Spending Review process.

Elizabeth Truss: As the Chancellor announced at Spring Statement, if a deal with the EU is agreed in the coming weeks, the 2019 Spending Review will be launched before summer recess and conclude alongside an Autumn Budget. When the Spending Review is launched, we will provide guidance to departments on the key dates for submitting their requirements.

Public Sector: Pensions

Paul Girvan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) removing and (b) raising the lifetime pension cap for public sector employees.

Elizabeth Truss: The Government is committed to public service pensions which are fair to workers and fair to other taxpayers. Public service workers are entitled to defined benefit pension schemes, which are among the best schemes available. Since 2010, the Government has made reforms to limit pensions tax relief for those on the highest incomes that save over £6 billion per year, and are necessary to deliver a fair system and protect the public finances. The pension tax rules apply equally across all registered public and private sector defined benefit schemes. In April 2016, the lifetime allowance (LTA) was reduced to £1,000,000. However, from April 2018 it has increased in line with CPI. This means for 2019-20 the LTA increased to £1,055,000. This allows savers to continue to make significant amounts of pension savings tax-free, while ensuring incentives to save are targeted across society. The LTA affects only the wealthiest pension savers. Around 95 per cent of individuals currently approaching retirement have a pension pot worth less than the LTA, while the median pension pot for individuals approaching retirement is around £170,000. The Government does keep all aspects of the tax system under review through the annual Budget process, in the context of the wider public finances.

Taxation

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the incidence of the taxation of carried interest has been annually since 2005.

Mel Stride: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer that I gave on 23 April 2019 to PQ UIN 243571. In addition, since 6 April 2016 Income Tax has been levied on carried interest that relates to certain short term investments.

Public Sector: Tax Avoidance

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many public sector organisations paid workers through disguised remuneration loans.

Mel Stride: Disguised remuneration (DR) loan schemes are contrived arrangements that pay loans in place of ordinary remuneration with the sole purpose of avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions. The loans are provided on terms that mean they are not repaid in practice, so they are no different to normal income and are, and always have been, taxable. Individuals, working for public bodies, identified in the course of HMRC’s compliance work as using a tax avoidance scheme would be investigated in the same way as any other scheme user. The Government estimates that around 50,000 individuals could be affected by the charge on DR loans. The charge applies to all users of DR tax avoidance schemes, it does not single out a specific group or industry. It is possible for individuals to use DR tax avoidance schemes without the participation or knowledge of the entity that engages them.

Mineworkers' Pension Scheme

Nick Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to respond to the open letter of 11 April 2019 on the Mineworkers' Pension Scheme ;and if he will meet with the signatories of that letter.

Elizabeth Truss: I have responded to the letter dated 11 April 2019 as the Minister responsible for the scheme. Discussions with the Trustees of the Scheme are ongoing about possible changes that would benefit all parties.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Museums and Galleries: Scotland

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to increase co-operation between Scottish museums and museums elsewhere in the UK.

Michael Ellis: The Government welcomes cooperation between Scottish museums and museums across the UK. While culture is a devolved matter, and sponsored museums are arms-length bodies which are operationally independent, the Government provides significant support to museums, including grant-in-aid funding, exhibitions tax relief, and the VAT refund scheme. In line with a recommendation from the 2017 Mendoza Review of museums, DCMS and the National Museum Directors' Council worked together to devise a Museums’ Partnership Framework, which was published in October 2018. National Museums Scotland are fully involved in this project. DCMS is currently analysing the responses to a survey on the amount of collaboration that currently occurs, and will publish a report later this year. Examples of recent cooperation involving Scottish museums include V&A Dundee, recently nominated for the Art Fund Museum of the Year award, which is a spectacular partnership showcasing hundreds of V&A objects highlighting Scotland's rich design heritage; joint acquisitions and exhibitions such as the Artist Rooms collaboration between Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland; loans such as those from Scottsh museums and organisations to enable the Charles Rennie Mackintosh exhibition at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool; and the Natural History Museum’s Dippy the dinosaur which is touring the UK and was recently exhibited in Glasgow.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Bullying

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of cases of bullying and harassment that have been recorded against managers in his Department in each of the last five years.

Margot James: The department does not hold a record centrally of employees who have had bullying or harassment claims raised against them, and therefore we are unable to determine how many cases of bullying/harassment have been raised specifically against managers. The total number of formal bullying and harassment complaints made over the past 5 years is listed in the table below. For the reasons stated above, we are unable to isolate complaints made against managers from these totals. YearNumber of cases20150201602017less than 52018less than 52019 (to date)less than 5 The department has an ongoing commitment to ensure that staff are treated with dignity and respect and that any concerns raised by staff are listened to and dealt with appropriately. Individuals who feel that they are being harassed or bullied can contact HR for support, or seek informal advice from representatives of the department’s Bullying, Harassment and Discrimination Advisers Group which was launched at the end of last year.

Women and Equalities

Politics and Government

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will make an assessment of the potential effect of identity politics on (a) political discourse and (b) the effectiveness of political processes.

Victoria Atkins: As my right hon. Friend has addressed his question to the Minister for Women and Equalities, I assume his interest in identity politics relates to Equality legislation which defines different groups of people by reference to their protected characteristics. That being the case, I understand his concern and we need to ensure that equality for everyone on the basis of protected characteristics does not result in micro-divisions in society created by identity politics.

Employment: Disability

Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government has taken to help ensure that people with disabilities receive help and support to identify and challenge discriminatory workplace behaviours and practices.

Victoria Atkins: Discriminatory behaviours and practices in the workplace, including those related to disabled employees and job applicants, are both unacceptable and unlawful. Protections for disabled employees and job applicants exist in the Equality Act 2010 and remedies are available where breaches occur. Acas and the Equality and Human Rights Commission, have published comprehensive guidance to assist employees identify discrimination and other unlawful conduct and then enforce their rights. This guidance can be found at:http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1859; and https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/disability-discrimination The Equality and Human Rights Commission is responsible for ensuring that the Equality Act 2010 is enforced and has become involved in cases where a particular principle of law is concerned or where there is evidence of widespread or systematic discrimination. Acas provides free authoritative and impartial advice to employees, job applicants and employers on their website at http://www.acas.org.uk, and via their telephone helpline 08457 47 47 47. The Government-funded Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS) also provides free bespoke advice and in-depth support to individuals with discrimination concerns and can be contacted via their website at www.equalityadvisoryservice.com, or by telephone on 0808 8000082 or text phone on 0808 8000084. The EASS also supports individuals to resolve issues using alternative informal dispute resolution and can also advise people who wish to take their complaint further on their options.

LGBT People: Monuments

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, whether the Government plans to commission a memorial for LGBT academics who lost their lives during the Holocaust.

Victoria Atkins: It is important we use the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia to remember the countless LGBT people who faced persecution during the Holocaust. The Government, with cross-party support, has committed to build a new national Memorial to the Holocaust with a Learning Centre, alongside the Houses of Parliament. The Memorial will stand as a reminder to all in Parliament, and the whole nation, of our responsibility to remain vigilant against all forms of intolerance and bigotry. Recognising their suffering and the injustices LGBT people continue to face should, of course, not simply be about gestures; it must translate into action. That is why the Government set out commitments in the LGBT Action Plan to promote the representation of LGBT people in public life.